Dreams of Spirits
by Catgirl-of-Bavaria
Summary: Six years after an unusual adventure in the realm of the spirits, Chihiro is finding that the memories of a beloved dragon are slipping further away. Returning to find her lost memories, another human follows her in...
1. Seeking Dragons

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: Hello! Welcome to my first fanfiction both of Spirited Away and on Hajimemashite and Konnichiwa! I really hope you enjoy it, and I hope I'm doing Hayao Miyazaki-sensei's wonderful story justice! bows to Miyazaki-sensei

:Disclaimer: All characters and settings are belonging to the anime genius, Hayao Miyazaki-sensei (with exception of only a couple of characters of my own creation), and the events in this story are only of my imagination. Enjoy.

Chapter 1 –Seeking Dragons

Chihiro woke in her bedroom in a drowsy stupor, listening to the alarm clock that annoyed her from its perch on the shelf above her headboard. She flung her arm up repetitively, attempting to land her hand on the "off" button, until the fourth and finally successful try. She drug herself up into a yawn in her nest of bedcovers, her long brown hair cascading down her back and onto her pillow and catching rays of sunlight that came in through her window.

The girl wrapped her arms around her knees and stared towards the end of her bed. She had had the dream again.

It was a fascinating dream, full of unusual creatures in an unusual place. She had many friends in this place, and she had been to this place many times in her dreams, but only once in actuality, if she was even sure that occurrence really happened…

_She remembered the whole ordeal in her mind. The long tunnel, the open field, the seemingly abandoned town. The place completely changed after nightfall. That's when all of the unusual creatures, the spirits, came out. She remembered her initial fear when everything changed, when she began to disappear. Then she remembered that boy. The boy with brown, angularly cut hair…She could vaguely remember his face. It had been so long since she had seen him…_

With every dream of this place through the years, no matter how much she didn't want it to happen, that boys face became more and more distant and forgotten. She hated that feeling, the feeling of forgetting the dragon that meant so much to her.

She tightened her hold on her knees and stared intently at the end of her bed, urging her memory to bring the dragon back…

"Chihiro! Your friend Shizuka-san is here!" Chihiro was snapped back to reality by her mother calling her from downstairs. She quickly got out of her bed and pulled off her pajamas and switched into some day clothes.

"I'm coming!" She called, pulling on a light blue t-shirt and a dark blue cotton skirt.

The girl was now 16 years old, and had been living her new house for six years. It was six years since she had come to this place, and six years since her father led them into that spirit world that she dreamed about so much. Her parents remembered nothing, but the teenage Chihiro remembered almost everything.

She hadn't changed much, except now she was taller, had longer hair, and had a still slender, but more developed figure. Her voice was a gently matured version of her ten year old self.

Sitting on the bed to tie her shoes, she caught glimpse of her window that viewed the area behind her house. Finishing the last knot, she walked over to the sill, and looked out on the landscape. She looked towards the sea of trees that was almost directly behind the house, and looked for that strange world. She looked for the bath house, or even for the vast field that spread before the bath house during the daytime. She looked for a silvery white dragon, slithering through the clouds.

But Chihiro only saw trees. Trees, civilization and a plain sky. It must have been the millionth time that she had looked out the window, looking for a hint of that world, hoping against logic that she'd see that stunning silver white scaled dragon with piercing green eyes slither through the sky above her window. She had been hoping for a while now that the wind would deliver his name on a passing breeze, or that the clouds would trigger a memory that would bring back his name to her, but this time, as she spent a solid and concentrated minute staring out the window, she found that she was again unsuccessful.

"Knock knock," Chihiro heard a voice from the doorway of her room and whirled around at the window. At the door stood her friend Shizuka, a girl of the same age with gleaming black hair that folded on her shoulders and eyes that were large and expressive. She was wearing a white sleeveless shirt and a tan denim skirt that perfectly accentuated her feminine figure.

"Oh, Shizuka…Hey," Chihiro said, pulling the drapes to cover the window.

"You day dreaming again? Sheesh, no wonder the teacher's always mad at you!" Shizuka laughed as she came into the room and leaned on the wall next to the closet.

"Yeah, I guess just can't help it sometimes," Chihiro said, grabbing a glimmering purple hair-tie off of her desk. She tied it into her hair towards the end of her long locks.

"So you want to go hang out in town?" Shizuka suggested.

"Yeah, sure, let's go." Chihiro agreed and grabbed her small handbag, eager to get her mind on other things before she dwelled on the spirit world for the whole day. The two girls headed down the stairs and out the door with a quick goodbye to Chihiro's mother.

Upon walking out the door, Chihiro promised herself that she'd continue the search for the missing dragon when she returned home.


	2. Lost Memories and Shrouded Pathways

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Here's chapter 2, then! Please enjoy, and keep on reading! Reviews are always welcome!

Chapter 2 –Lost Memories and Shrouded Pathways

The town was at the bottom of the hill that Chihiro's house was perched on, and past the little forest that she had committed to memory from the bedroom window that she always gazed out of. It was a perfect day for a walk into town, the sun was out and gleaming on the grass as the wind rippled through it.

Two figures walked down the side road that linked the town to the hilltop neighborhood, laughing and talking as they went. Chihiro had woken up at noon, she found as the midday sun beat down on her brunette head. Only the breeze and the occasional and partial cover of a path-side tree provided relief from the hot summer sun.

Shizukas sudden visit had brought Chihiro's attention to other things, but still, every now and then the vision of last nights recurring dream slithered through her memory. Shizuka was oblivious to these dreams and Chihiro's remnants of memory of the spirit world. Chihiro had decided long ago not to mention it to anyone, not even her parents. She was already enough of a misfit without everyone thinking that she was having hallucinations of "imaginary" worlds.

She remembered that the only reason that she was with Shizuka right now, was because Shizuka had come to her.

It wasn't long after her ordeal in the spirit world that she had started going to her new school, and she had become reserved, with fresh memories of her friends and the bath house to keep her occupied, and also for the other students to start rumors and stories about the new girl that kept her eyes on the sky as if waiting for something to fly above her head.

Shizuka had seen this new girl, and decided to talk to her, and had consequently become her best friend. But with a new friend to share her life with, her memory had begun to erode. Very slowly, but it had eroded just enough to take away certain parts of the spirit world, like what happened just before getting into the bath house, some of her friends, and even that boy. She couldn't even remember his name, and his face was always shrouded and it was tearing her apart in her dreams.

Shizuka had always been fascinated by Chihiros constant day dreaming. She had always wondered what Chihiro day dreamed about, and sometimes even asked, but only to receive a vague, "nothing much." Someday, she swore to herself, she'd get Chihiro to open up to her. She swore to get Chihiro to tell her the whole truth. She knew there was more to Chihiros dreaming than the troubled girl let on.

The girls reached to bottom of the slope and stopped to wait for the traffic to die down on the street that was their last obstacle before town. Chihiro once more found herself gazing at the sky, looking for a clue from her 10 year old life that would get her to remember.

"Chi, come on it's safe to cross now," Shizukas voice came from beside Chihiro.

Chihiro was now fixated on a small clearing that led into the forest. There were two tiny pathways that followed the path, which Chihiro knew were tire tracks. The clearing was covered in vegetation, bushes and smaller trees and long grass that had sprung up over the 6 years that had passed. The path was now so covered that it had only left a small hole at the ground that Chihiro would only be able to get through if she crouched. But still, she knew that clearing…

"Chihiro!" Shizuka called to the dazed girl from halfway in the street. "Come on, before more cars come and you get run over!"

"Wha-? Oh! Sorry, Shi-chan…" Chihiro babbled as she sprinted across the empty road. "I just got…distracted…" She said, her minds eye returning to that pathway into the forest.

"Jeez, of course you did" Shizuka laughed, laying a hand on her friends shoulder. "Now, let's go get something for lunch!"

Shizuka bounded happily down a narrow town street in search of food. Chihiro, with one last glance at the overgrown forest clearing, ran after her friend.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: Gah, my chapters are so short…Oh well. They'll get longer, don't worry…Keep reading and have fun, and I hope you enjoy the story!


	3. The Eyes of a Dragon

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: yay, here's a Haku chapter! Anyway, please, enjoy, and reviews are welcome!

Chapter 3 –The Eyes of a Dragon

The wind brought a huge wave through the tall green grass that spread seemingly for miles in the vast field. The expanse was littered with curious rocks that resembled a smiling old woman, and that were covered with bright moss that seemed to glow in the afternoon sunlight. Broken down structures also littered the place, but were fewer than the rocks. Above all that loomed a large bright red structure, with a small tower that carried a clock that chimed the hour loud and dominantly through the peaceful landscape. The building, though losing some of its luster and paint, still took it's rightful and dominant spot as the gateway of worlds.

In the sea of grass, there was a wave of greenish brown that blew gently in the wind, swirling above the body that it was anchored to. The hair remained straight, even with heavy gusts, and was blown sometimes just the right way to reveal large and beautiful steel green eyes. Eyes that were themselves anchored to the large red gateway.

It was a teenage boy that was sitting in the grass, staring at the link to the human world. It was all he had been doing for a while now; Working by night, coming to this same spot during the day. It was starting to take a toll on his work, as well, staying out here when he was supposed to be sleeping, but he couldn't help it. He was waiting.

The large red tower began to tell the boy the hour. It gave him five long gongs to signal it was five o'clock, and nearly sundown. Nearly time to go back to the bath house for work.

He let out a huge sigh and flopped backwards onto the grass, his arms sprawled out on either side of him. Staring at the perfect blue sky, he wished for an instant that life itself was that perfect.

"What am I doing here?" He asked himself, putting a forearm over his eyes. "Even if she does remember me, she probably has a life out there now."

He stared hopelessly at the blue sky above him, wishing for an easy answer.

'That's right,' he thought, closing his tired eyes. 'She probably has friends out there. Human friends like her. Maybe she even…has someone who…loves her…'

He shook his head, trying to ward off such hopeless thoughts. He preferred to make himself believe that the girl he missed so much still thought of him, still remembered him, even that she wanted to see him. That's what kept him coming back to this place during the daytime, to wait for her to return.

He remembered the promise that he'd made her. He'd assured her that they'd meet again someday. He sighed, thinking of how it was impossible for a spirit to pass through the tunnel into the human world. If his promise was to be upheld, it was up to her to return. The dragon had no clue if she had ever considered coming back, or if she even remembered him or this world.

He knew he longed to see her. Even if there was the slightest hope that she'd come back, he'd wait for her. Even if it took forever…He forced his eyes tighter and took the doubtful and worried voices and locked them captive in the very back of his mind, a ritual that he'd been performing for quite a while now.

"Haku, what are you doing out here?" a tired voice came from behind him. He lifted himself up to see a young woman with long, brown hair, still in her sleeping clothes and with her mouth in a gaping yawn standing above him. "So, this is why you're (yaaawwn..) so tired all the time…"

"Oh, Rin. It's just you." Haku said quietly.

"Yeah, just me and my lack of sleep! I saw you come out here earlier. What the heck is possessing you to stay up all day?" She yawned again as she sat next to the boy.

Haku leaned forward and hugged his knees to his chest. He wondered if he should tell her about his yearning to see the human girl that neither of them had seen in more than half a decade.

"You remember her, don't you?" He decided to ask her quietly.

"Her?" Rin pondered as she looked at the sky. "Her…"

"The human girl, Sen." Haku spurred her on, using the only name his co-worker knew her as.

"Ah, Sen!" Rin suddenly yawned. "Yeah, I remember her just fine." Rin went quiet in remembrance. "She was a good kid. Kinda cute, actually…" Her tired voice sounded softened at the mention of Chihiro, the girl that she had looked out for as her own little sister.

Haku gazed at Rin for a moment before staring off again into nothing. Rin noticed this and read the dragon immediately.

"You miss her." Rin leaned back onto her arms in the rippling grass. "You come out here every day in some hope that she'll show up in that little tunnel. Haku, it's been six years…" she trailed off sadly. She knew how much Haku cared for her, how much the human girl had helped him. If it wasn't for her, Haku would have still been Yubaba's stone cold henchman, or rather, dead because of that apprenticeship.

"I know. But still, something just brings me out here. I can't explain it, I just…" Haku babbled, trying to get his feelings straight. "I just…want to see her…" He finally sighed, setting his chin onto his supporting arms.

They sat in silence after that, watching the grass ripple in the wind and reflect the evening sunlight as it went. The words spoken by Haku hung in the air, and he suddenly felt very awkward and exposed. Rin had never seen the dragon as distressed as he was now. It took six years, but the boy's depression had finally caught up with him.

"Well, either way, Yubaba's gonna be pissed if she finds out that you've been skipping naptime for waiting for the human girl that she still remembers and detests." Rin said, standing up and offering Haku a hand. "Well, she'll be pissed when she finds out you've been skipping naptime, period!" She tried to laugh, pulling the boy to his feet.

Haku now stood almost as tall as Rin, and was about the human age of eighteen. His straight, angular hair now lay gracefully on his shoulders. True, the dragon's eyes had gotten their luster and beauty back when Chihiro had given him back his name, but they had grown sadder and regressed to their previous steely stage with each passing year. His work uniform, once neat and clean, was now lightly stained and worn from the last six years at the bath house.

Through flowing waves of brown hair, the dragon's steely eyes glanced back at the little doorway to the human world, before returning his sad gaze to the path ahead of him and following Rin.


	4. Hallucinations and Dreams

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Ah, another update. Huzzah, things are going to start moving along more very soon. It's been a few days since I updated, unfortunately. I'm trying to get one chapter (at least) every day on here, but things have been pretty busy recently…What with birthday party planning, going out with friends, and playing my new FMA video game! 3 Anyway, Thank you to Tiafan for the review, and enjoy the story!

Chapter 4 – Hallucinations and Dreams

Dusk was painting the sky over the small Japanese town a light red, and reflected on the clouds as a bright pink hue. The wind had died down, and the sun was half hidden by the forest at the bottom of the hill.

Chihiro and Shizuka were now beginning their ascent to their neighborhood after a whole day spent in town. They were each bragging about their full stomachs, full shopping bags, and their consequently empty wallets. They didn't normally get to indulge themselves so much, but today they actually had allowance saved up, and they took advantage of it.

"Hah, it's been such a long day," Shizuka sighed to her friend as they crossed the empty road to the path up the hill. "I still can't believe the bargains we got today!" she exclaimed excitedly, running her hand through the contents of her bag.

"Yeah, me neither," Chihiro cheerfully agreed.

She reached into her own bag and pulled out a silver bracelet, a token of the days adventure, and ripped off the paper price tag. She fumbled with the clasp only for a second as she fastened it around her slender wrist. She held the jewelry up to admire it, letting the fading sunlight and pink clouds play over the expertly forged links.

She lowered her wrist to peer at the focus of the bracelet, a shining plate with a carefully engraved dragon.

As they got to the very bottom of the hill, her attention was again diverted to her left, to the trees and the overgrown pathway that had haunted her earlier. It was now covered in shadow, but she could make out a figure, standing just next to the path opening. It was wearing a white work uniform, and had chin length brown hair. She was stopped in her tracks.

It was him! The boy from her dreams, the boy that she was forgetting against her own will!

She stared intently at his face, squinting to discern his features, but the shadow was too much, and she could still not see his features. She took two steps in his direction to get a better look, and the boy did not move. He appeared to be looking right at her, but he made no sign that he saw her.

Chihiro took a few more steps as his luxurious hair waved in the breeze. She was now wide eyed and couldn't believe what she was seeing.

She racked her memory for his name, desperate to call out to him…

"CHI!" A sharp bark from behind her called her out of her trance as she whirled around.

"Chi-chan, I've been calling you for the past minute, didn't you hear me?" Shizuka came up to her and grabbed her dazed friend by the shoulders.

"Oh, I-I was just…" Chihiro murmured, looking back to the path, now void of the boy she'd just seen.

"Chi, seriously, don't scare me like that!" Shizuka demanded, with eyes even wider than her friends' and full of worry. "Come on, I'll stay at your house tonight."

Shizuka led her friend by the hand up the path to her house. She was actually starting to worry about her friend Chihiro. She'd never been in such a strong trance before, and Shizuka thought that maybe she had been hallucinating. She didn't know what, but maybe she'd find out tonight.

Chihiro stared back at the pathway, hoping to see him again as Shizuka hurried her up the hill. A glint at her wrist called her eyes to her new bracelet and the engraved dragon that bore a perfect resemblance to the dragon of her dreams.

She longed to give the bracelet a name.

_Chihiro heard the sound again. The sound of a far off train. She ran and ran to find it, pelting through narrow streets lined with empty cafés, trying desperately to find the train. She came to a large red Japanese garden lantern at the top of a flight of grey stone steps. The last bit of daylight shown over a huge bath house that sat just past that lantern and across a long and broad bridge. She approached the bridge as she heard the train sound again, this time closer. She climbed the railings and looked down into the canyon as the train swept through the shallow waters below. She looked up towards the bath house and saw a boy in a white and blue uniform…_

_Suddenly, Chihiro found herself running through an old town, running past the same old traditional cafés that she passed earlier. They were now lit with several red lanterns, giving a sort of glow to the place, and they were occupied by ghostly shapes, featureless except for their glowing eyes and reaching, gangly arms. She was running down small flights of stairs, and running, running until she plowed right into a river that she swore was not there before. Full of fear, she pulled herself out of the water and peered out into the river that had replaced the vast field that had been there not too long ago. There was a river boat. She started to reject what was happening, she collapsed to the ground in a frightened crouch, hugging her knees._

"_It's just a dream, just a dream…Go away, go away…" she chanted to herself, rocking on her heels. "Disappear…"_

_Lifting a hand, she frightfully saw herself disappearing, and began rubbing her arms frantically._

"_It's just a bad dream!" She whimpered, looking at the floating masks that were now dismounting the riverboat, their bodies seeming to spill down from the masks themselves. She ran away at the sight and cowered in fear at the edge of the little town of shops. No one could find her there. She was safe, she just had to find out how to stop disappearing…But there was a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up to see that boy again…_

_Now she was falling, in the twilight. That boy was again with her, connected to her, holding her hands as they fell. They were both smiling to eachother and Chihiro felt so close to him. She was crying happily, her tears streaming up into the air as they fell._

_The boy was only inches from her face now, as they nuzzled each other, but she still couldn't see his face. They continued to fall…_

"_I remember now, my name is….."_


	5. Searching for the Answer

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Another chapter for my fans, however few they may be ;; Thank you so much to Tiafan and Xx.Eternal Rain.xX for the wonderful reviews! gives pocky 3

Here's the next chapter, enjoy!

Chapter 5 – Searching for the Answer

Chihiro woke sorely on her floor just below her bed. Rubbing her hip where she had landed, she tried to remember what had just happened.

"Ow…" she muttered. "That's a new one…" She whispered, thinking on the sprint through the little row of cafés.

She looked on the floor beside her where Shizuka was still fast asleep, regardless of any sound that Chihiro had made falling out of bed. Very quietly, Chihiro got to her feet and walked to her window, pulling aside the drapes and peering at the forest. She leaned to one side of the window, resting her heavy head on a balled up fist.

She called on her memory again, desperate for anything, anything that would bring his face back, or to have his name pass through her lips once more. She knew he meant both worlds to her, but still, he was slipping away, more and more each day. She hated the feeling of losing him again, as well as forgetting anything else that happened that time she was in the spirit world.

"I know you're out there somewhere," she whispered helplessly to the nighttime air.

Her eyes sank to the windowsill, and she noticed a thin layer of dust collecting the light of the moon. In the far right corner, a small spider was resting in the middle of her moonlit web. She could hear the calm, subtle breaths emitting from her friend of six years behind her.

She felt quite cool, in her spaghetti strap shirt and loose boxer shorts that she had worn to bed, but still, the anxiety that she felt was enough to have made her think she was in a sauna.

A breeze wove through the open window and her long brown hair replied, sending strands into her vision that was still transfixed on the little spider.

When she looked back out the window this time, she was drawn to the darkened figure of a huge, very old and gnarly tree that lay not far from the forest pathway that she had seen earlier. Her vision was drawn to the area at its feet, where a collection of moonlit squares gazed back up at her.

She stared at them for a few moments and remembered the little stone houses that she had first laid eyes on when she had come to this place six years ago. It was the first of the hints that led her and her parents to the spirit world.

"_What are those stones? They look like little houses…" Chihiro had said, practically leaning out of the car window._

"_They're shrines. Some people think little spirits live in them." Her mother had replied, quizzically. _

Her eyes were glued to the shrines, remembering that day. Finally, she snapped back to reality and looked towards where the road had ended and the vague remnant of a pathway into the forest ensued. That pathway…

"That answer's got to be down that pathway!" She suddenly hissed, recalling that it had all begun with those shrines and that pathway. She clumsily backed away from the window, letting the drapes fall gracefully to cover it.

She checked her watch. 1:00AM. Just enough time to get into the forest and snoop around.

Hurriedly, Chihiro grabbed a pair of loose jeans and threw them on over her boxers. She grabbed her shoes from under the bed and quickly pulled them on, not even bothering with socks. She took some pillows and extra blankets and stuffed them under her blanket to fool Shizuka that she was still there if she just happened to wake up while Chihiro was gone.

A little silver glint on the shelf above her bed called to her, and she remembered it was where she'd left her silver bracelet. She stared at it, still leaned over her bed, midway through stuffing her blanket with a fluffy pillow. She couldn't see it through the darkness, but she knew that the dragon was peering back at her.

She nearly shivered, remembering how amazingly it looked like the dragon of her dreams.

She tore her gaze from it and continued her duty of forming a decoy of pillows.

She silently managed to get out of her room, down the stairs and out the door without so much as a squeak from the floorboards. She knew where each was and how to avoid them.

After grabbing a lantern from the doorside table, she ran behind the house and through the garden to stop at the very top of the hill that led down from her blue house to the edge of the forest. Gazing down once more at the gleaming shrines, she set out down the hill at a clumsy sprint.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Ack, another short chapter! Eep…Well, anyway, stay tuned, I'll put another chapter in a couple of minutes.


	6. Assistants and Friends

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Another update for you! Enjoy and review

Chapter 6— Assistants and Friends

Haku walked calmly through the chaotic bath house, a bucket of dirty wash rags at his hip. It was rather busy today, but he still heard the whispers that floated around him from the other workers. They were almost never too busy to not pause momentarily for a brief bit of gossip.

"I still can't believe he used to be Yubaba's apprentice!"

"Now he's just a regular worker? I wonder what happened…"

"They say that he's been really depressed lately…"

Haku was used to it by now. It had been going on for six years, after all. He was actually surprised that the others hadn't gotten over his drastic change of vocation by now.

After Chihiro had left, he kept his vow that he'd stop being an apprentice to Yubaba, but he still found himself tied to the bath house. He knew that it would be where Chihiro would come, if she revisited the spirit world again. He thought about going to see Zeniba, Yubaba's sister in Swamp Bottom, but decided he'd rather stay in the bath house, close to the gateway, even if the resort was a hive of corruption and his boss the queen bee.

Reaching the wash room, the dragon dumped out all of the soiled rags into the wash pile and turned to leave.

"Haku!" He heard a voice trying to find him. He recognized it at once as Rin. She came into view, and she saw him there, empty bucket in hand, staring back at her. "Oh, there you are. Look, they just assigned us the big tub…It's gotten completely out of hand again, so we have to get over there and start now." She said, an ugly expression of loathing for the foremen spread across her face.

"C'mon, let's go, just leave the bucket here." She grabbed his hand and hastily pulled him away with other workers staring at the odd partners.

"Ugh, this is completely disgusting." Rin complained as they stood in the entrance to the big tub area. It was once more covered in reeds and grime. "It's just the same as when they told me and Se—" She cut herself off, remembering Haku and his heartache for the girl.

She quickly glanced at him to see if her words had phased him, but he only stared at the grimey tub.

"Nevermind, let's just get to work…" She muttered, a small blush of embarrassment spreading across her face as she hunched over her broom and began to push the reeds to one corner.

Over the years that Haku had worked as a regular bath house attendant, he had learned the tricks of the trade, and become almost as skillful as his new partner, Rin. He remembered how he came to be in Rins teachings six years ago…

"_You what!" Yubaba screeched, nearly dropping her cigarette to the rug of her office._

"_I said, I no longer desire to be your apprentice." Haku stated calmly and firmly, his brilliant green eyes glittering in the dim candle light. _

"_And what brings this on all of the sudden?" She demanded. "That human brat, no doubt!"_

"_I just don't want to work that close to you any longer. I am willing, however, to take a normal job in the bath house as a worker." He stated, keeping his cool and repressing his annoyance at her insult of Chihiro. _

"_Ah, and what makes you want to work down there? Isn't it better being an apprentice to the big boss, hmm?" She said, beginning to circle him where he stood. "Isn't it better to have privileges than to just be another meaningless worker bee?" she taunted him. Haku kept his intense eyes focused forward._

"_With all due respect, I nearly died on the errand to retrieve Zeniba's Gold seal a few days ago. The errand that," He looked at her. "You assigned to me? That you forced me to do with that little black slug?" _

_Yubaba stared at him for a few seconds. How did he know about the black slug that she had used to control him! It must have been destroyed, she thought, for the way he's talking to me! But who would have…_

"_Sen…" She muttered inaudibly. Haku's eyes widened. He knew he heard her say something…_

"_Alright alright, fine, you're of no use to me anymore, Haku. I have no tolerance for rebellious dragons." She walked over the the human skull that acted as a phone to the foreman's desk. "Foreman! Foreman!"_

"_Yes, ma'am? Sorry for the delay it's just busy today." Chattered the skull with the foreman's voice. _

"_You've got someone who needs an assistant down there, don't you? Send her up!" Yubaba barked at the skull._

"_Oh, yes, right away, Yubaba ma'am!" The skull went quiet. _

_Yubaba sat down at ther desk, muttering something under her breath and starting to play with her jewelry. Haku stood there, waiting for the person that the foreman would send up. Several minutes passed, and the door to Hakus right slowly opened._

"_You wanted to see me, ma'am?" The young woman in the doorway bowed her way in, her long brown hair sliding on her shoulders. She looked up and saw Haku, who was also staring at her. He recognized her as Rin, the girl that he'd given Chihiro to. He had known that despite her first impression as someone cold and impatient, she would take care of the girl like she was her own little sister. _

_And he was glad to have been right._

"_Ah, yes…It's my understanding that you no longer have an assistant, since the human girl left." Yubaba said coldly noting Chihiros existence and not looking up from her precious gems. _

"_That's right, ma'am." Rin said calmly and respectfully._

"_Well, meet your new assistant, Haku." _

"How's the tub coming, Haku?" Rins voice came between the dragon and his memories. He looked at his progress, and it was actually coming along. He'd absent-mindedly cleaned half the tub already. It wasn't sparkling, but the grime was gone

"Wow, you're really doing a good job!" Rin exclaimed upon peeking over the side of the enormous basin.

She was a whole lot nicer to him than when they were first partners. He started out a little clumsy with orders, which annoyed her. She hadn't even liked him to begin with. But after a while, Haku fell into the worker spirit and adapted quickly. Upon seeing that Haku had detached himself from Yubaba, she started to soften up and became a friend to the dragon.

Haku had to admit, it wasn't anywhere near like having Chihiro around, but it was great having a friend to at least share company with during the long work nights.


	7. Pathways to Locked Memories

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Behold! the first of several chapters written in the throes of insomnia! I'm rather proud of them, actually, I guess I really am a creature of the darkness Seriously, I had insomnia when I wrote this a coupleof weeks agodue to a heat spell and my dad being out of town. mutters to self _Cursed Global Warming…._ahem

So, apparently I write well when I'm sleep deprived, but I can't draw…. Huh. Go figure.

Anyway! Enough of my ramblings, back to the story! XD

Chapter 7 – Pathways to LockedMemories

Exasperated pants left Chihiro as she neared the bottom of the hill, fumbling her way in the dark. She had already fallen down once, and a dark grass stain on both knees of her pants was evidence of her inherent clumsiness.

Swinging her lantern around blindly, she slowed her pace to brace herself for the change of terrain, as she neared the flat ground. She hadn't lit her lantern yet, as she saw fine enough with the light from the full moon. Once she was completely on the flat, she paused, listening, looking for anything, taking in the surroundings and letting her memory take her back six years.

She ended up halfway between the large tree littered with shrines and the overgrown entrance to the forest. Chihiro remembered at this point her father was driving straight into the forest after they saw the shrines and noted that they may have taken the wrong turn. Her father had decided to plow on, convinced that the trail was a shortcut to their new home.

She nervously glanced around, looking for any midnight wanderers or witnesses to her madness.

'That's what they'd call me. Mad.' She thought to herself as she twisted the dial on her lantern, coaxing the bulb to grow brighter.

She held up the now glowing light to see better the edge of the forest. She saw now, in her dim light, the exact spot that the boy had been standing earlier.

She felt her palms go warm and sweaty just thinking about that boy.

"Completely mad. That's what they'd call me…" she muttered to herself, thinking how absurd this would be to someone else, had they been watching her and reading her feelings.

She slowly approached the opening, lantern held far in front of her. She heard the near silent strain of every blade of grass that bent beneath her feet; every snap of a twig started her. Finally she stood there. The exact same place her hallucination stood just hours ago. She was at the entrance to the dark forest, and now all there was to do was go in…or turn back.

Chihiro gulped, whatever it was that she knew about herself, she knew that she was a coward. Sure, she knew she had found bravery in herself that she never knew existed when she was in the spirit world, but in the human world…She always felt awkward and out of place. She couldn't even be outgoing in school. It was probably her cowardice, she believed, that prevented her from going back to the spirit world all these past years.

She thought about the boy again… the boy who, in her memory was growing more and more faceless everyday. Staring down at the leaves and twigs scattered on the ground, she regretted to think that one day he'd be completely gone. This boy who meant so much to her. That she was certain she loved.

"It ain't gonna happen." She boldly whispered to the leaves. "I'm not letting him slip away anymore." She lifted her head just slightly to look through the little gap in the shrubbery.

More determined than ever, Chihiro knelt down and crawled straight through it. She reached the other side, with scratches up and down her arms from all of the unfriendly branches, and held up her lantern to light the way.

The forest, she found, had grown significantly. The canopy reminded her of a cavernous European cathedral made of trees. She then turned her glance to the path ahead. The light of her lamp only reached so far, before the path was dark with small patches of moonlight. It was positively beautiful and picturesque in every way.

She began her march into the wood, remembering being thrown around in the backseat as the scenery raced by. Her father had gone faster and faster, and the bumps in the cobblestone path had shown her no mercy.

Thinking of how fast her father was going, she figured that it was probably more than a bit longer by foot than by car. She started at a hasty jog, then transitioned into an all out sprint. Running further and further into the woods.

"Whaa—" She exclaimed, as she felt her foot tug at a root, sending her to the ground. Chihiros lantern escaped her, and she pulled herself into a seat, rubbing her sore and bloody knees.

"Ow…." She cursed at the protests that her knees were giving her. Opening her eyes, she saw a vague shadow just behind some bushes next to her on the edge of the road.

The moonlight glinted on the shadow, giving it a mischievous little grin. Chihiro gasped and sidled several feet backward, wondering what was gazing at her. A creature? A person?

"A spirit?" She squeaked, unbelieving. She fumbled for her lantern and held it up with a shaking hand. The shivering light rested on a moss covered stone, carved in such a way to look like a small, grimacing woman in roughly the shape of an egg. Chihiro stopped shaking and got to her feet. Peering with the light over the shrubs, she got a closer look.

"I remember this!" She gasped, recalling seeing this exact figure six years ago as her father sped by it. "I must be close!" She said, not helping but to smile.

She pelted off in the direction she was headed, running, running, ignoring her fatigue and gasps for air until she came to the end.

She slowed her pace as she saw another statue of the same little egg-shaped woman, smiling at her, as if to congratulate her on her journey. It was just sitting there, in the middle of the pathway, at the edge of her lanterns light. She walked, slowly, catching her breathe at the same time. She knew it was here. The gateway to the spirit world. She bathed the little smiling woman in even more light the closer she got.

Chihiro sensed it. Just beyond the edge of her lamp she sensed the immense structure. Looking up, she found it even bathed beautifully in moonlight. She slowly stepped forward, not daring to breathe, and her light gradually fell on the large red walls that were covered in vines and surrounded an arching tunnel, full of pitch black darkness. She felt her heart quicken as she held her lantern above her head, as if in some hope that she'd see all the way to the other side.

The silence was deafening as she stood there, lighting only the very entrance of the tunnel, leaving the rest as dark as it had been without light. The breeze tugged at her ankles, and her memories seemed to echo through the dark hole.

"_The wind's pulling us in…"_ Her ten year old voice seemed to echo through the endless tunnel.

"_Let's go in. Just a quick look."_ Her fathers voice followed.

"_I'm not going! It gives me the creeps!"_ Her voice again.

"_Don't be such a scaredy-cat, Chihiro." _

There she stood once more, staring into the pitch darkness, as if she was watching the day being relived in front of her. The wind gave a quiet howl as it blew through the tunnel, and Chihiro still stood there. Transfixed, and not knowing what to do next.

She wanted to go through the barrier, to go find that boy, but she knew at night the spirit world on the other side was completely different. She knew what she'd find immediately on the other side of the tunnel during the day; a small room that almost looked like a church with several park benches, with a door that led to the huge sloping field of green grass that spread all the way to the grey stone steps.

During the night, however, she knew that the field was transformed into a huge river, and she didn't know what lay on this side of it. Even then, the last time she had been in the spirit city at night, it had caused quite a commotion because she was human. The only way she was able to escape punishment was asking Yubaba for a job, she remembered. That was also the boys doing, saving her from being turned into a pig alongside her parents.

She knew she couldn't go forward, but she didn't want to leave just yet. She found, off to the side of the trail, a large stone to have a seat on. She set down her lantern and twisted the dial to make the light dimmer, to conserve its battery power for the journey back to her house.

Staring at the looming building, she tried to coax the boys face and his name back into her memory. But even up to the time that her watch told her that it was three o'clock, she hadn't had any luck.

Eyes full of tears, Chihiro trudged back through the forest and up the hill as rain began to pelt her head and the deep blue sky to the east painted itself lighter.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : No, she hasn't gone in yet, gomen! I'm leading up to it, I swear! Ah, but finally, a long chapter in my story. sighs happily Oh! By the way, thank you everyone for your reviews, they are much appreciated!

More products of my heat-stricken insomnia to come! happy flails!


	8. Screaming Emotions

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Right, here's another update, I love writing this story! X3 I love my reviewers, too, of course! hugs reviewers Thank you all for reading and for your reviews! I'm really glad my story is doing well!

Chapter 8 – Screaming Emotions

"Master Haku!" A small and familiar voice came bounding into the Big Tub area of Yubaba's bath house.

Haku peeked out of the tub to see the small and often annoying green frog in his blue yukata hopping along through the entrance. He'd been scrubbing all the excess grime off of the inside of the tub in a stupor, partially from lack of sleep and longing for Chihiro.

Rin was working hard on the other side of the tub, covering him and making up for his shortcomings with her speed and vigorous scrubbing. She too, peeked over the side of the tub at the frog that bounced for them.

"Master Haku, Yubaba wants to see you, right away!" He exclaimed, now bouncing in place. It was doubtful that the frog ever sat still.

Rin winced at the announcement. Maybe Yubaba had been watching him as he barely scrubbed the tub…He'd been working on it all night while she did the rest of the area. True, the tub was the toughest thing to clean, but he had just worn himself out after only half of it.

"Right…" Haku grumbled, pulling himself over the edge of the giant basin. His uniform was covered in filth, and for a split second he thought maybe he should change, but what did he care what Yubaba thought about his clothes. He pulled his hair out of the loose ponytail that he'd kept it in during cleaning, letting it fall gracefully to frame his face perfectly and without a crease.

He felt a hand on his shoulder as he began to follow the bouncing frog out the door, and looked back to see Rin, standing just at the foot of the tub with a worried look on her face.

"You gonna be alright up there?" She asked him quietly. Haku was surprised to see her so concerned, about him of all people.

"Yes, I know what to expect from Yubaba." Haku told her, keeping a firm and blank face."I'll be fine, don't worry about it."

He turned and headed for the lift, leaving Rins hand to hang in midair. She glared at the ground that she had practically polished clean, remembering what had happened to Haku six years ago while Chihiro was there.

She remembered looking for the girl when No-Face had gone crazy, and finding her in Kamaji's boiler room. The place was covered in blood…Haku's blood. He was lying there in Kamajis futon, dying because of the mission that Yubaba had sent him on. She knew that Yubaba was capable of a great many things.

"Dammit, if something happens to that kid before Sen comes back…" She cursed under her breath, leaping back into the tub to finish the job before sunrise came around.

Haku slowly walked down the cavernous hallways that were decorated with only the tackiest combinations of vases, rugs, tiling and wall tiling. He was on Yubaba's level of the bath house, and it was painfully obvious of her taste in décor. He ignored the tackiness as he padded in his stained yukata down the seemingly endless hallways to her office. He gave two brisk knocks before allowing himself into the room.

"You wanted to see me, Yubaba?" He declared his presence firmly. He couldn't show this woman any uncertainty or fear. His face became the stone that it had been before Chihiro had come. He locked himself away.

"Ah, yes, Haku. It took you long enough." Yubaba said coldly, barely glancing at the boy from some other papers. She settled those papers into a random drawer before fully looking at him. "Would you like to tell me what you've been doing during the daytime?" She asked with a would-be sweet voice.

Haku stood there, stone-faced in the center of her vision, not saying a thing.

"The fact is, Haku," Her voice turned to the same cold cackle as it normally was. "I know what you've been doing, every day for, what, a few months now?"

Yubaba's eyes flashed at the boy. He showed no emotion, but she could tell, the old witch spirit knew that just under the cool and collected surface of the dragon, he was a mess. Just under his surface, was a whirlpool of emotions; despair, doubt, desperation, and heartache. They were swimming around in the young river spirit, just begging Yubaba to pay attention to them, to help them fester.

"You've been leaving the bath house every day, while you are supposed to be sleeping," She tallied. "This in itself is forbidden…You run through town, to the human side of the field, and lay there all day." She flashed her eyes at him again. He still hadn't moved an inch, but she saw his anxiety continuing to flow through his body.

"So, when you don't find time to sleep, it affects your work. And may I remind you that you may not be my apprentice, but you are still under contract, to me."

Yubabas temper was beginning to flare. If there was one thing she couldn't stand besides humans, it was a lazy worker.

"You're losing me precious gold, and I'm not going to stand for it, Haku."

Haku remained motionless and expressionless. His anxiety still called out to Yubaba, asking her to use it to bring the rebellious Haku back under her control.

"And what for?" She hissed quietly. Haku suddenly noticed her change in demeanor. Looking straight at her now, he could see her wide mouth twisting into a grin. "Waiting for Sen, are we? Sacrificing work and profit for that little human brat who left six years ago?"

Haku felt his fists ball up at the word "brat". She was toying with his emotions now. He always knew the woman was a sadist.

"Oh, have I upset you?" Her voice had turned into a mocking coo. "Well, Haku, I don't know what else to say, but you should give up this false hope that Sen will come through the gateway and get back to making me money!"

"Her name is Chihiro." Haku heard the words escape his mouth in a low and angry growl, even surprising himself. He'd been so stone cold not so long ago. He could lock away those thoughts the made him act like this, made him jump so quickly to Yubabas command. He could lock his rebellious attitude away so easily. He'd done it for the last six years, on any rare occasion that she cared to summon him.

Yubaba stared back at him, surprised it had taken so little to break Haku of his calm attitude. It must have been his lack of sleep, she thought to herself.

"Admit it, Haku, even you have lost hope of her return." She told him gruffly. "You fear that she's forgotten all about you and this world."

"No." Haku denied. The only reason she'd called him there, he realized, was to taunt him about his lost love.

"Oh, yes." Yubaba assured him. "Right now, your doubts are swirling through your mind and your heart. You deny them, but they're trying to take over. You know Sen is not going to return."

"Her name is Chihiro!" His voice suddenly elevated with his anger and stress. He became angry with himself for snapping so easily. He knew showing Yubaba weakness was the one thing to never do in the bath house.

"How dare you speak to your boss like that!" Yubaba hissed, pointing a large finger and a sharp red nail in his direction. "You know she's not going to return and I can prove it!"

Haku stared at her, bewildered before it happened. His head was overwhelmed with pressure, coming rapidly over him like a raging headache. His thoughts had voices now, they were screaming at him, screeching at him. Yelling things that terrified him, things that he'd locked away and suppressed for the past six years. Yubaba had let them all out of the imaginary vault in his head, and they yelled and taunted him.

"_She's forgotten about you!"_

"_She isn't coming back, ever!"_

"_You're wasting your time, sitting out in that field!"_

"_If she loved you she would have come back by now!"_

Haku held his ears desperately as he sank to the floor of Yubaba's office. The pressure on his head tightened, as if he was trapped in a vice. His eyes were closed tight, but his vision was blurred with flashes of violent and dark colors, and flashes of memories of Chihiro running away and towards the gateway, away from him forever.

"_She's forgotten!"_

"_She doesn't love you!" _

"_She doesn't love you!"_

"No..NOOO!" Haku yelled back at them, holding his head. The pressure was unbearable, the shouts and jeers were getting louder in his mind.

His eyes were still tight shut, but he could tell that there was sweat dripping down both his face and his beautiful hair. His whole body was tense, recoiling from the pain that was now racing through his veins as if his blood was boiling inside them, making it feel as if he were burning alive.

His face was now barely touching the floor, as he continued screaming and seeing the visions of colors that had now started spinning around him, faster and faster, and he was still watching Chihiro grow smaller and smaller.

He had experienced Yubabas punishments before, but this was far worse than any punishment that she'd let on him. He used to be subject to punishments like this, Yubaba using her magic to physically torture him, but the mental and emotional torture that she was now subjecting him to was nowhere near the same. This was the first time he'd actually cried out in pain and denial. He denied his own thoughts that Yubaba had enlisted against him.

"STOP IT!" He screamed as the same voices became louder and chattered faster until they'd become just a loud and inane babble. The flashes of color became an indeterminable blur in his mind, and the vision of Chihiro was completely gone.

"JUST STOP!" He felt tears welling up in his eyes and falling to the tacky rug.

Suddenly the voices receeded, and the pressure lifted a little. The blurs of color became darkness, empty and pitch black darkness. His veins became more relieved, but his heart still raced, trying to keep up with the fatigue. The voices were gone now, probably returned to their vault and mentally locked away again.

Haku's whole body felt achy and hurt, as if he had just been thrown down every flight of stairs in the bath house and then kicked for good measure. He suddenly felt liquid seeping through his fists that had covered his ears. Bringing them down, he pitifully looked at his shaky palms to see small pools of blood in each, from his nails digging into his palms. Tears still spilled down his cheeks and blended with the little pools of crimson.

"You see, Haku, you're not as high and mighty as you seem to think you are." Yubaba accused the dragon, telling him that she was still in the room. "Sen isn't coming back and you know it. If I hear of you ever going to that field again, I'll really give you something to cry about, you understand me?"

Haku still knelt there, collapsed on his knees, staring at the blood on his hands. Those thoughts were his, they had been pushed away to the back of his mind, but they were still his thoughts. Did he really have that much doubt in Chihiro?

He looked down at his left forearm, at a group of blurred kanji. He knew it read "Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi," his true name. Chihiro had given him back that name, she had freed him from Yubaba. But here he was, in her office, getting mentally tortured because he chose to wait for her. She'd saved him so much already six years ago, when it was he who set out to save her and her parents. Was it too much to ask the gods to bring her back to him? Was he just being ungrateful for what she'd already done without a second thought? Was he just being selfish?

"Yes, foreman? Send up Rin. She needs to get her assistant out of here." Yubabas distant voice was talking to her skull phone.

"Oh, my, is everything alright?" The skull asked, unconcerned and most likely only trying to get more juicy tidbits for the next night's gossip.

"Yes, yes, everythings fine, the dragon just bit off a little more than he could chew…" Yubaba told him impatiently "Just send her up."

Haku sensed that the sun was rising behind the deep grey rain clouds outside as he sat on the floor, still staring and crying into his hands. Rain was gently falling on the window, and added to the throbbing in his head and the ringing in his ears. He felt Yubabas presence disappear, and figured that she must have disappeared into her residence. What did she care about Haku who was still bleeding on her rug?

"Hello?" Rin said, peeking into the seemingly empty room. "Haku?" She exclaimed, seeing the dragon on the ground.

Haku said nothing and didn't even look at her.

"What'd she do to you!" She inquired, kneeling in front of the boy and gripping his shoulders.

"It's nothing…Let's just get out of here…" He muttered, staggering to his feet. Rin convinced him to let her help him down to the boiler room, lifting his arm to go around her shoulders. Like that, they staggered together down the tacky hallways and down the lifts to the bottom level to Kamaji. She didn't think he should be around the others in the men's sleeping quarters.

The sootballs watched intently and curiously as Haku sat, leaned up against the herb drawers in the boiler room in a pile of blankets and pillows letting Rin bandage his injured hands. He had just told the story to her and Kamaji.

"And I still have a head ache…" He said, rubbing his temple with the heel of his already bandaged hand.

"You just get some rest, you can stay down here as long as you need to." Kamaji told the dragon as he settled into his own futon.

"I still can't believe that witch…" Rin growled while holding a bit of bandage tape in her teeth as she pulled the roll away from her. "How'd she know what you've been doing, anyway!" She tore the tape off the roll angrily and discarded the roll behind her.

Haku stared off into space in a trance as the sootballs gave a sad sigh and began to disappear into the little holes in the wall.

"Well, I have to go get some sleep of my own…" Rin said, rubbing the bandage tightly into place on his right hand. "Haku, seriously, take some time off, I'll cover for you. Just stay down here, and Yubaba won't be able to find you. She doesn't come down this far."

Haku nodded to her, not bothering to resist. He was suddenly more grateful than ever that she'd taken a liking to him.

She crawled over to the small sliding door and disappeared behind it. The only sounds now were Kamajis snores, the low hum of the sleeping boiler, and rain pelting the back door. Haku stared up at the ceiling wondering what he felt. He knew he loved her, but should he just give her up? Could he?

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Ack, I know, a sad chapter, but still! This ain't a Disney story is it?

Please no flames > It gets better! Nyah!

Anyway, another update soon, I gotta go get my house clean for my b-day party next weekend! Whee!


	9. The Smell of Memories

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Yay, thank you everyone for reviews! I got some cleaning done for my party next weekend, but my house is still a mess! T.T Anyway, I just wanted to keep the story moving, so here's the third update of the day! Lol. Gomen, this is turning out pretty long…I have no one to blame but myself! Ah well. This and a fair few chapters to come were all made in that bout of insomnia earlier mentioned, I wrote _a lot_ that weekend! Lol, anywho, enjoy and review, I love feedback!

Chapter 9 – A Human Girl in the Rain

Thunderclap woke Chihiro up from her deep sleep as she lay in her bed. She looked around at her plain room, coming back into reality. Her clock told her she'd slept until noon again, but it was nowhere near sunny outside. Her floor was bare, as she had seen Shizuka off a few hours ago before catching back up on her sleep after her midnight journey into the forest.

Shizuka hadn't appeared to suspect anything, but Chihiro was still worried that she'd seen the scratches up and down her arms and the scrapes on her knees. Shizuka was a sharp girl, so she must have just been polite and not mentioned anything.

Chihiro took to her ritual of getting up to look out the window. The panes were drenched in hours of rain, and lightning flashed through the watery haze, followed by loud thunder rolling across the town and vibrating through her house.

Her parents had already gone to work, she had seen them off after Shizuka had left, so she was all alone.

She'd had another dream about the dragon, but this time it was disturbing her. She blankly stared out the window, remembering it and suspecting that it had led to a great deal of tossing and turning.

_She was in a familiar room full of color, many colors that clashed horribly. A fireplace stood, cackling away to her left, a mahogany desk to her right._

_He was in the center of the room, collapsed on his knees on the loud crimson rug, colors swirling around his head, which he was holding in pain between his fists. She could hear his screams, begging for it to stop, his whole body cringing from invisible pins and needles._

_Chihiro watched there, helpless, watching sweat and tears pour from his face, and stain his long dark hair that cascaded over his head and into a heap on the ground below. It was amazing, however awful and terrifying the sight before her was, his hair was mesmerizing and beautiful, even in the heat of torture. _

_She wanted to call out to him, to run to his side, but she could only watch helplessly in this dream, tied back for some reason. _

"This is awful…" Chihiro whimpered quietly, burying her head in her arms, unable to shake the vision from her mind. "I still can't remember his name, and he needs help. He's being tortured by Yubaba, I know it!" She cried into her scratched arms, making the only possible conclusion from the colorful and tacky background.

It was her office, the same place she'd stood and begged for a job. She had stood where his sweat and tears were now staining the carpet. It sent an unpleasant chill up her spine to think of it. Bringing her hand to her forehead, she felt a layer of cold sweat, another symptom of the horrifying nightmare.

Turning from the window, she made her decision. She was going back to the spirit world, now.

She got dressed, pulling on a long-sleeved purple top and the same pants she had worn out that morning, still ripped and grass-stained. She completed her outfit with her black hiking boots. Without a second thought, Chihiro snatched the silver bracelet on her shelf and jammed it into her pocket.

She quickly scrawled a note to her parents, telling them that she'd gone out, she wouldn't know when she'd be back, and that she'd probably spend the night at Shizuka's house. Her parents would buy it, they were barely ever home, and even then they knew Chihiro was often out with Shizuka. Chihiro left them notes like this all the time, and they wouldn't be suspicious if they didn't meet Chihiro at home for a good couple of days.

Chihiro had a pretty free life, and now she was most grateful.

Posting the note to the refrigerator, she hurried out of the back door. She didn't want the neighbors to see her exit the house and give witness to her parents. The point was to not have them know exactly when she left.

Slipping and sliding down the newly muddy hillside, Chihiro again managed to fall down and stain her knees with more grass and mud. She rushed through the small gap in vegetation, refreshing and re-opening her scratches on her exposed arms—she had rolled up her sleeves on the way down the hill— mixing traces of blood with the rain that was soaking her as she ran down the forest trail.

Finally, the little statue, the Welcome Woman, as she had nicknamed it earlier, greeted her in front of the vine covered plaster building. She walked past the Welcome Woman, giving the stone a gentle and friendly pat, and paused at the tunnels side, leaning against the wall for support as she gasped and heaved to chase away the fatigue of running all out through the forest.

Chihiro's hair was plastered to her back, and her bangs to her forehead. Her cotton shirt was soaked and clinging to her slim figure. The only part of her that felt reasonably dry were her feet, which were protected quite well by her hiking boots. Her breathes were still coming in short gasps as she stood there, gathering her strength to cross the barrier. The injured dragon flashed through her mind, making her wince as she remembered his cries.

She looked back at the Welcome Woman, who sat there smiling. The rain pattered mercilessly on both of their heads.

"He needs you." The Welcome Woman seemed to say to her, coaxing her on.

Chihiro gave one last smile to the small statue and turned to face her fears. Collecting the damp air into her lungs, she breathed out and took a step forward. A great and rainy gust followed her into the tunnel again.

She walked through the echoing darkness, seeing a small arch of light at the end. The teen kept her footsteps calm and steady, her eyes forward and determined, focusing on that light and forcing herself to remain composed.

Finally she met the light, in the little room that was furnished only with bird baths and park benches. She could glimpse the damp grass just outside the door in front of her. Chihiro shivered, knowing that in just seconds she would be back into the relentless rain.

She finally reached the final doorway to the spirit world, and just barely saw the little spirit town through the haze of rain. She couldn't help but to smile as she tore up the dirt pathway to the grey stone steps.

This was where she had last seen the boy, when he saw her off after regaining her parents' humanity. She stopped at the very top of the flight, next to the frog statue that was a fountain by night.

"This is where he promised me…that we'd meet again…" she whispered, remembering his hand slipping from hers, the last time she had felt his closeness, his warmth that he only shared with her. She remembered the sun beating on them as the rain continued to beat on her.

She tried to place his smile, his eyes, but they were still lost. Even standing at this memorable spot.

She swallowed her sadness and plowed on, running through the streets, under dormant restaurant signs, up small flights of stairs, past a single café that had piping hot and inviting food that invited her human senses with its aroma.

'A human trap, that's what it is,' she thought as she recalled how easily her parents had been drawn to it, how easily the spirits spell took affect on them.

She looked just ahead of her, and there it was. Looming far above her in the mist and rain as she slowed to a halt, was the bath house. Several memories came through her mind looking at the massive building. Still none carried the name of the dragon, or his face.

Was it really this easy to forget someone she obviously cared so much about?

Chihiro wiped some rain from her face, and slowly headed up the steps, calling up the directions to Kamajis boiler room.

Haku tossed and turned, unable to get any sleep in Kamajis boiler room. True, he wasn't asleep, but it felt like he was having terrible nightmares. The pain and torture he'd endured in Yubabas quarters kept revisiting him, tensing his muscles and reviving and strengthening his headache, throbbing in his bandaged hands.

Then there was also that question that refused to leave; still wait for Chihiro or give it up?

A roar of thunder vibrated through the entire building, only contributing to the river spirits insomnia. He sat up and glared at his dark surroundings. He could see the glow of the heater, the outlines of herb drawers, and Kamajis sleeping form that was mercilessly emitting snores.

Hugging his knees, the dragon tried to calm himself. But now he found that the whole room smelt of coal and soot. As a spirit connected to the nature of the world, this was no place for him. It was practically suffocating him, but he truly didn't want to shun Kamajis hospitatlity or Rin's sacrifice to keep him hidden from Yubaba They wanted him to heal properly, and it was the first friendship he'd experienced since Chihiro had been there.

"Chihiro…" He whispered her name to the darkness.

He pictured her in his mind. Her beautiful eyes, her amazing smile that was even enough to melt Haku's cold and heartless demeanor that he so often displayed to the other employees. How special she had made him feel. Her human scent. She was a bit of a klutz, but he found it cute. He found everything about her cute.

Then he realized. If he had any clue about the aging of humans, than she'd be sixteen now, of course, the age that humans mostly matured. She'd be beautiful by now. He smiled as he longed to see that. A beautiful Chihiro, matured into a young woman.

Thunder grumbled loudly outside again, sending another shudder through the bath house just as Kamaji emitted a giant snort as he tossed just a little in his futon, distracting Haku suddenly. He felt his face grow slightly hot, realizing what he'd just been thinking about.

"I need some air…"He muttered, suddenly feeling suffocated by the machinery that surrounded him and by his own emotions.

He silently collected the blankets to his feet, stood up on his still shaking legs and silently padded towards the back door. Maybe he'd go to the bridge. He didn't care about rain, but rather invited it. He needed natural air to help him think things out, the rain to help ease his achy muscles.

His mind told him it was logical to move on, but his heart was still standing firm. He actually thought that his mind was going to lose the battle, and he'd find himself back out on the field as soon as tomorrow.

He silently shut the door, just glimpsing a couple of sootballs bouncing happily in their little pen that must have heard him leave. Ignoring them, he moved on up the stairs, careful not to slip on the drenched bottom few that were simply bits of stone that jutted out of the wall. He knew if he slipped, his magic was too weak for him to turn into a dragon and save himself from the fall.

He made it to the wooden stairs and he was completely drenched in the rain. He felt more confident on these stairs; they were a bit more stable, especially in the rain. It felt like forever going up the stairs at his slow pace, but he made sure to reconnect with all of the nature around him before he got down to the hard thinking that he was going to subject himself to at the bridge.

He finally reached the wooden deck at the top of the flight that connected by a door to the garden on the side of the building. The same garden that he'd sheltered Chihiro in so long ago when the bathhouse was in total chaos from her arrival.

Haku opened the door as he wiped the rain from his weary eyes, and turned back around to ensure that the door would close silently behind him. He saw the door shut and click into place with a small clack, and took in a deep breath in preparation for what he was about to contemplate.

As he took in breath, however, he caught a familiar smell.

A scent that he hadn't smelt in years. He heard the squeak of a door behind him.

Haku's eyes widened as they remained hooked to the door jam.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- :Haha, my first cliffie! Huzzah, next update soon!


	10. Two Paths Meet

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Mwahaha, I hath returned to save the readers from the cliffhanger I last left with! –evil laughter- I probably would have done it earlier, but I woke up at ten and was only about a quarter awake… -Blinks sleepily- As of now(1:30pm), I think I'm about half awake! Yay, good for me. I don't know why I'm so tired today, but oh well. Huzzah, here's the next chapter, I know you guys will enjoy it! Read and Review and make me a happy catgirl!

Chapter 10 – Two Paths Meet

Chihiro found the little door at the side of the welcome patio that she remembered led to the garden on the right side of the bath house entrance. She noted that it was now smaller to her as she crouched down to open it, vaguely thinking of how it may be like squeezing through one of the cabinets of her kitchen at home.

She pushed it open easily, and, to her relief, quietly and crawled through, noting that it was about the same as the overgrown trail back in the human world, only void of any bushes that wished her arms further harm.

She stood nimbly, and futilely brushed off her pants. Almost walking off, the girl remembered the door, and quickly glided it shut with a push from her foot. It emitted a low squeak, but Chihiro wasn't concerned. She was closer than ever to finding her lost love, her heart told her through it's rapid pace.

Turning once more for her destination, she set out at a hastened walk down a muddy stone trail. She stepped lightly; making sure her boots wouldn't make too much sound on the pathway of stepping stones. As she walked, Chihiro took in the beauty of the well kept garden.

Turning her head towards the back door of the garden, she was startled to see someone already standing there.

Stopped in her tracks, the teen noted his dripping wet green-brown hair that stuck to his back in the heavy rain, and white and blue work uniform.

It was him, she knew just from the hair. He was slightly hunched over, his forehead leaning on the door frame. She could tell, somehow, that he knew of her presence.

Again, she felt her heart aching to call out to him…

------

Haku stood there, focusing on the door jam, hearing the footsteps grow closer until they stopped and he heard a small gasp behind him. His heart raced, the dragon knew it was her, but still the voices that had taunted him earlier in Yubaba's office returned to him, telling him everything he didn't want to hear or believe.

"_All humans smell the same," _

"_Maybe another human has gotten into this world." _

He refused to believe it. Mentally throwing those thoughts into the vault with the others, Haku took another deep breath, and turned towards the human behind him.

She stood there, about five feet tall, staring at the ground. He could see the collection of tears in eyes that he couldn't really see, but knew were beautiful.

Her clothes and long hair were completely soaked and plastered to her body, which had indeed matured into a delicate and slender but developed form.

She looked so perfect standing there, Haku declared to himself that it was one of the most stunning images he'd ever seen. She wasn't beautiful as he'd thought she'd be, she was gorgeous!

Suddenly, he noticed all the scratches that had torn up her arms, and the scrapes on her knees. She was covered in mud and blood and looked soaked to the bones. He felt the urge to protect her rising up again, to heal her wounds, like she did for him once. But first he settled on healing her tears first.

She looked up at the dragon, revealing her face and tears and the fact that she'd obviously just noticed him gazing at her.

"Chihiro…" He breathed soothingly, feeling her name flow out of his mouth. He was glad to note that it was the most inviting tone he'd ever heard himself use with anyone as far back as his memory went.

She stared back at him with wide brown eyes that were still brimmed with tears, just for a moment, before, with a choked little voice,

"Haku…" She smiled through her tears, suddenly, repeating his name. "Haku…Haku!"

------

Chihiro felt fear rising in her body as she watched the guy just stand there, as though pretending she didn't exist.

'Maybe that's what he's doing,' she thought pitifully. 'He knows I've forgotten him, so he's ignoring me…'

Still, Chihiro called on her memory more desperate than ever. Still, she battled with herself, her hope pitted against her doubts.

'Maybe this is all just another dream… Soon he'll turn around, and his face will be covered with mist or something like that, and I'll wake up back home.' She hung her head in guilt and fear.

She stood there, staring at the ground, fuming at herself, angry that here he was in front of her, and she still couldn't produce his name. Tears began to well up in her eyes until she looked up to see him there.

Gazing back.

With large beautifully green eyes, and an expression of pure bliss on his pale face. She could see him again!

"Chihiro…" He whispered, looking back at her tear-filled eyes with total adoration.

With that look on his face, the face that she could see again, Chihiro found herself swimming in memories. She heard herself chanting Haku from all of the memories that flashed before her eyes, some yelling for him, some whispering.

She saw his face from several different times of her journey long ago, younger, like that of a twelve year old boy, but his face nonetheless. Staring at him now, his matured face still gazed at her, with a small but heartfelt smile. He didn't seem mad at all.

"Haku…" She choked a little on her tears. Trying again, she sobbed, "Haku…Haku!" She felt herself smiling underneath all of the rain and tears on her face. She had got him back!...

------

"Haku," Chihiro said, suddenly losing her enthusiasm. Her tears started rolling down her pink cheeks in droves, and her smile started to vanish. "Haku, I'm sorry…" She sobbed, suddenly dropping to her scraped knees. "I'm so…Sorry.."

Haku watched her, almost frightened as she whimpered an apology that he wasn't expecting. As her knees hit the ground, he suddenly panicked and went to her.

Kneeling almost in mid-run, he put both hands on either shoulder. He tried to look into her eyes, even though they were pointed towards the torn material of her pants. Chihiro wept quietly as she focused on those rips, not bearing to look into the dragons amazing eyes.

"Chihiro, what are you apologizing for?" Haku asked her worriedly, gently wrapping his toned arms around her and pulling her into a hug. He placed a hand on the back of her head and brought her into the shelter of his shoulders, protecting her from the rain.

"Because…I was forgetting you…little by little…" She choked. Haku felt his heart skip a beat at her words, but continued to console her, stroking her long and drenched hair as he stared at a little thorn bush near the edge of the garden.

"I dream about you…Almost every night…" She said into his white top, trying to hold back the tears.

Haku held her close to him, letting the rest of her tears stain his top.

"Ever since I left this place I've dreamt about you, Haku…But I began to lose you, until your face was always hidden, and your name was gone!" She told his chest as she clenched her fists that gripped his shirt. "I couldn't find your face or your name in my memories, and I hated it!"

Her last words hung in the rain, echoing through both of their heads. So she had forgotten, Haku thought with despair.

'But not completely,' he told his captive thoughts before they had a chance to take over him.

He felt Chihiro drift out of his embrace and he found her looking at him, almost like a child who was ridden with guilt.

"Are you mad, Haku?" She asked quietly and innocently, her eyes full of honest fear that Haku'd seen there before. Last time it was just all out fear of being in a new world. This time, though, he knew it was the fear of rejection, something he'd been suffering for a long while now. "Are you mad that I forgot you?"

"No, Chihiro, I'm not mad at all." He said assuredly, giving her what he hoped was his best smile. He hadn't smiled in so long. "You're here with me again, and that's all that matters to me."

He pulled the human girl back into an embrace, but this was more of a loving than comforting embrace.

Chihiro felt her heart lift out of it's pit of guilt as Haku pulled her against his body. She was so grateful she didn't have to turn around knowing that her loss of memory had cost her such a treasured relationship. She threw her arms around his solid shoulders and let her smile widen, taking the dragons scent in. Letting his body warm hers.

In the rain and thunder, they sat like that for a few minutes, letting the rain continue to soak them both. Haku, after a while, drifted apart from her, very slowly. Chihiro saw through the rain that his face was slightly pink.

He looked at her for a moment, taking her in. He felt his heart racing, he knew what he was about to do, and he was nervous that he might screw it up. After all, most of his life had been spent as an emotionless and harsh stone that Yubaba had turned him into.

He slowly leaned his face towards Chihiro's, tipping his head slightly to the side. He got closer and closer to her lips before stopping just short of them. He was going to let Chihiro close the gap, or lean out if she didn't want it. He felt his own lips throbbing just from his nervous heartrate.

Chihiro suddenly understood why he was hesitating, and blushed a furious red before smiling at Haku and leaning slowly into his kiss.

Haku melted as she closed the gap, something that he'd never imagined could happen to him. Chihiro just felt so perfect to him, in his arms, in her personality, and now in this intimate way. She was perfect in every way. He decided to let his tongue just barely explore her mouth, only just taking in her taste, before calling it back and finishing the kiss.

"I love you, Chihiro," he whispered through the still falling rain, as he had barely pulled away. "I should have told you the day I first saw you."

Chihiro responded by pulling him back into a deeper embrace. She nuzzled into the crook of his neck affectionately.

"Kohaku…" She sighed, using his true name.

Haku suddenly, with the harsh reminder of a thunderclap, realized where they were and what time it was. Both the river spirit and the teenage girl were completely soaked, and the rain was only coming down harder. He got to his feet and offered Chihiro a hand up. They both headed for the door that led to the deck on the side of the building, hands together and fingers interlaced.

"Kohaku, what happened to your hands?" Chihiro enquired, suddenly noticing the bandages wrapped around them.

"Oh, it's nothing…I'll explain in a minute," Haku replied, reluctant to tell her about the pain he endured in Yubabas office for waiting for her, just to save her another spin into guilt. He helped her step over a slot of a missing step.

"You know, there's a funny story to that missing step back there…" Chihiro told Haku with a fond giggle as they made their way to the bottom of the steps.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Woo! Finally they meet! I'm terribly sorry if this chapter was a little confusing, organization-wise…I was trying to get both their perspectives on the situation, It's easier to understand when I divide the two different character's thoughts in Word, but it didn't carry through last time I did it… (chapter 9 between Chi and Haku's halves of the chapter) –ponders…- I'm still new to this site and everything, so I still need to get all of the little tricks down, please bear with me! –Nervous laughter- Well, I'll try again, but if it's all jumbled and confusing, you'll know why!

Anyway, hope you liked it, I'll update soon, as always. No, I don't really have a life. I'm a high school graduate, and I have not been able to find a job. Rawr. My days of late have been nothing but cleaning, reading and writing Spirited Away fanfics and working on my own original manga. Mwahaha, Fear the summer of idleness!

As always, Thank you for all your reviews, and gomen to any reviewersI haven't responded to, I think I've responded to everyone, but with my laziness and utter madness, I might have missed someone...-sweatdrop- Anyway, thank you all!


	11. Confession

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Rawr, this chapter went up a little later than I intended, I was having some difficulties with my computer, with the internet being stupid and not working -twitch- Hmm. Technology. gotta love it. -whacks computer-

Anyway, I think this chapter's pretty cute, I loved writing Haku in this one It's a short chapter, I admit ((gomen)) but it's got cuteness and angst all in one! Yay!

Chapter 11 – Confession

"It's probably best not to mention what happened up there to anyone…" Haku said quietly as he pulled more blankets into Kamajis quarters. Kamaji was still fast asleep in his own futon as he lay out the blankets next to his previous mound, which were now occupied by Chihiro.

"It's probably unheard of for a spirit to kiss a human…Especially in a place like this." Haku whispered, thinking of Yubaba and her pure hatred for humans, specifically Chihiro.

Chihiro sat in the blankets watching the sootballs bouncing all around to welcome her back. Even they hadn't forgotten her visit. Chihiro gave them her shoes to go and hide, but they were disappointed to find that the hiking boots didn't fit into their little cubby holes.

Haku looked up from spreading out his new bed, and saw Chihiro, pink in the face, and obviously having her fatigue catch up with her. He suddenly realized, she'd been running through the rain of both worlds to get here, and she was still completely soaked. He didn't know much about humans, but he predicted that they could get sick like spirits could. Perhaps not from the same things, but still.

Chihiro felt a cool hand on her forehead, and looked to see Haku, on all three, feeling her forehead with a concerned look on his face. His hand stayed there as he closed his eyes for the best reading.

"You're burning up, Chihiro…" He announced to her. "That's…a bad thing for humans, right?" he asked for confirmation. Chihiro nodded.

"I should probably get out of these clothes, they're drenched…" Chihiro added, peeling her shirt from her torso. Her face flushed at the realization of what she'd said. She looked at Haku, expecting him to be just as embarrassed, but saw curiosity in his face that she'd never seen there before.

"So, humans get sick from wet clothes?" he suggested, raising an eyebrow beneath his bangs.

"Well," Chihiro replied, a smile spreading across her face. "Just when we wear them for too long or in the cold, like I was today."

"What do humans do when they're sick?" Haku enquired next, shifting himself to sit on the balls of his feet. "How do they get better?"

"Um…" It had never occurred to Chihiro that she'd have to answer such seemingly simple questions. But he was a spirit, afterall. Haku was obviously learning this lesson about the health of humans for the first time.

The river spirit's eyes remained brilliantly green and full of curiosity, entrancing the human girl's own brown eyes.

"Well, I guess just change into dry clothes and keep warm, sometimes they take warm baths, and they eat soup a lot when they're sick…" She answered, pondering and recalling memories of what her mother did for her when she was sick in the human world. She vaguely saw the dragon cock his head slightly at her words, as if in thought.

Haku got to his feet and walked over to the small sliding door behind him. Chihiro's eyes joined with the soot ball's as they followed him with their eyes, curiously.

"Chihiro, stay here, and don't make a sound. I'll be right back." He sounded just like the Haku from six years ago, Chihiro smiled after him, knowing that she still had a guardian in this world.

Chihiro was drifting off to sleep when Haku slid quietly through the sliding door, closing it nimbly with his foot. Chihiro looked over at him kneeling there with a pink bundle in one hand and a bowl of hot liquid in the other.

"Kohaku, you didn't have to…" She stammered as he set the bowl in front of her.

"Actually, yes, I did. Look." He replied, pointing to one of her scratched arms. Holding them up, she noted that she could see the sleeping lump of a boiler man straight through them. "You started to disappear after I left."

"Good point…" She said as she hastily grabbed the soup and poured a spoonful into her mouth. She swallowed down the rest of the warm soup gratefully, though she was truthfully not very hungry. She couldn't help but ignore her own saturation with the dragon being so generous and helpful.

"I got you this, too." He held up the pink bundle, which she immediately recognized as the work uniform for the female employees. "It may be loose, but at least it'll be dry." He said, passing her a slightly oversized uniform. It had obviously just come from the wash room, as it smelled freshly of cheap soap.

She heard the servant door to her right slide shut, obviously signaling her that Haku was giving her privacy to change. Kamaji was still fast asleep next to his work station, so she decided to crouch on the other side of it near the heat of the boiler to change. She then took her sopping clothes to the back door and wrung them and her hair out just out of reach of the rain. Laying them in the steam room to dry, she crossed the room to open the servant door. She found Haku sitting against the wall just next to it, waiting patiently for the human to come and get him.

With a small smile, the boy climbed through the small door and followed Chihiro back to the mound of futons and blankets. In the corner of his eye, the discarded bandage roll called to him.

"Chihiro, give me your arms," Haku instructed, gathering the little remaining bandages.

Set on his knees in front of her, he gently took one of her battered forearms in his hands and inspected the damage. The scratches ranged from her elbows all the way to her hands, and varied in degree. Some were shallow and others were still deep and bleeding. He took a damp cloth he had also fetched and dabbed her wounds, training himself to become gentle again.

Having cleansed her arms, the green-eyed boy busied himself with wrapping them delicately with the leftover bandages on the roll. He found that he was being slightly clumsy, for his own injuries on his hands.

Chihiro watched with a grateful smile as the dragon tended her wounds. For a brief moment, she wondered if the river spirit before her had the powers to heal wounds. Suddenly, she remembered her asking him about his bandaged hands, and also her dream.

"Haku, I uh…I had a nightmare right before I came back…" She began awkwardly as he finished off the roll on her left hand. "You were in Yubaba's office, and…you were hurt…I could tell, because you were screaming…begging for it to stop…"

Haku cringed. She had seen it? She'd seen him at one of his all-time lows? Did she have any clue of what was screaming in his head in that terrible office?

"It's what made me come back," Chihiro blurted, a little nervous about Haku's silence. "I saw you in trouble. But, does it have anything to do with your hands being hurt?"

Haku finished his job with a small sigh, wondering where to start. He looked her in her concern-filled eyes, and decided to tell her. She had already seen the torture, why try to hide it?

"It was punishment…for going out to the field every day." He said, feeling a knot mass in his throat, suddenly taking interest in a thread that strayed from one of the blankets below them.

"I've been out there everyday for a while now…I've been waiting for you." He took a chance to sample Chihiro's reaction, seeing the concern, and her shining brown eyes that were raptly attached to his, urging him on.

"Yubaba was angry that I'd left the bath house and was losing her money because of my lack of sleep, so she finally punished me." Haku finished hastily, eager to get to the end of the conversation he'd hoped to avoid as soon as he saw her in the rain.

Chihiro stared back at him, suddenly stricken with guilt again. That's what he was afraid of. He'd brought back the guilt. The soot balls sat in their little pen, squeaking regretfully.

"I lost my own temper towards her," He said, trying desperately to shift the blame from his love. "My hands are just from clenching my fists too tightly…But the rest…She used my feelings toward you against me… She can see right through me. She knew how to get to me, using my fears of you never coming back to torture me…"

He finally said it. He had just confessed the feelings that had been locked at the back of his mind for so long to the last person in any world that he wanted to hear them. He was afraid to look back at her, for fear of finding her eyes full of tears.

He felt more awkward by the second, noticing that his last words hung heavily in the air of the boiler room, ringing painfully through his own ears.

"I'm sorry…" Chihiro whispered, "…I took so long to come back…"

"Chihiro, please don't apologize…" Haku told her taking both her hands in his own. "I understand, you live in the world of humans. Your family is there, your friends are there, your home is there."

He lifted her face to look into his emerald eyes.

"Remember, we got you that life together, six years ago. I couldn't ask you to give it up just to keep me happy." He whispered soothingly to her.

She began to smile weakly as she took in his words. He sensed the guilt ebbing from her heart, and relief pouring into his.

"It's nearly sunset…" He noticed, listening to the thunder outside telling him of the outside world. "You should get some rest, Chihiro. We both should." He added, rubbing his tense shoulders that still carried the mark of Yubabas punishment.

They massed the blankets together to form a large nest that they both snuggled into, Haku resting his achy arms around the human youth and pulling her into the shelter of his body. She replied, nuzzling closer, setting her cheek against his neck and emitting a content sigh.

How amazing, the highs and lows that he'd experienced all in just hours; Yubabas punishment, the intimate moment with Chihiro in the garden. The prospect of deciding whether or not to give up hope, holding her in his arms as they both drifted to sleep.

Somehow, all of the pain and torture had come through only to make the highs even higher for the dragon.

---

Kamaji woke at exactly the moment of sundown, either by habit or perhaps an undeniable spell of the bath house workers.

Reaching for his kettle of water, the old spirit noticed a great heap behind his station, where Haku had set up his futon. Though it appeared to have more blankets than the old timer remembered, and on closer inspection, an extra person!

He perched himself on his station, and getting a better look, he saw Haku with his arms wrapped protectively around a brown haired youth in the bath house uniform of pink. The smell of human suddenly met his senses, and he confirmed that the girl was none other than…

"Sen..?" Kamaji whispered to himself.

He gave a smile under his bushy mustache and brought their covers up to the couples' shoulders, as if they were his own grandchildren. Turning around in his station, he muttered something happily about "Pure love,"

"C'mon, you lazy bums, get to work!" He barked at the soot balls who leapt from their slumber near the edge of the pen by the sleeping dragon and human. The little creatures zoomed back into their holes to retrieve the first coal stones of the night.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Ah, now that the little awkward chappie is behind us, we can start having fun! Which is what I did with the next few chapters. Gotta go edit them and get 'em up!


	12. Journey to the Second Human

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Hello again, another update for you.

As much fun as I had with curious Haku in the last chapter, I had even more fun writing him in this chapter! Yay for insomnia driven inspiration!

Chapter 12 – Journey to the Second Human

It wasn't even an hour into the night when Haku woke from slumber, being revisited by muscle aches and spasms. Sitting up carefully as to not disturb Chihiro, he gave a yawn, and flexed some select muscles. They still remained tight and sore.

'Yubabas getting pretty good at these punishments,' He thought to himself. 'The pain lasts for hours…'

He decided to stay in the blanket nest, over Chihiro, and took to watching the soot balls feed coal to the insatiable furnace. Kamaji was hard at work, grinding herbs in his mortar and tugging at the bath tokens that found their way to his vision. Leaning his heavy head back onto the drawer of some unknown herb behind him, Haku sighed deeply, wishing he could shut his eyes without these phantom pains.

"When did Sen arrive?" Kamaji asked Haku as he continued his work. Haku had begun stirring just moments before, causing the old spirit to finally notice his wakefulness.

"Just hours ago." Haku answered as he tied back his straight hair with the strip of cloth that he'd tied around his wrist before seeing Yubaba. His fingers nimbly worked behind his head as he rose out of his side of the futon.

His hair now successfully tied back, Haku pulled at the covers of their nest and sheltered Chihiro with them. He noticed her hair was dry now, spreading gracefully around her shoulders, hiding the pink of her uniform with streaks of chestnut brown. Haku smiled and couldn't resist temptation to stroke it lightly with his fingers. It was even silkier than he'd ever thought to imagine.

She gave no response, rather continued emitting low, content breaths. He briefly wondered if she was dreaming, and what about. Perhaps of distant memories of her last visit to this world.

"Keep a watch on Sen for me, Kamaji." Haku requested, regretfully taking his attention from the sleeping girl and starting for the servant door. Kamaji looked at the river spirit as he added some herb to the mixture in his mortar.

"Ooh? You're not leaving, are you?" he asked him quietly. "RIn told you to take time off, and get some rest."

"I know, Kamaji, and I do appreciate your hospitality in letting me stay here, but I should be out there working right now." Haku responded professionally and with a bow. "If Yubaba senses that Sen is here, then it would be suspicious if I were not present at work. She'd expect me to be gone, that's what would confirm her suspicions of Sen being here."

"Ooh, well…What if she comes looking for the girl herself?" Kamaji suggested.

Before Haku had a chance to answer, the servant's door slid open as suddenly as a flash of lightning.

"Haku, you gotta come quick, they say there's a human girl here!" Rin announced, crouching through the door and promptly shutting it with her foot. She looked slightly sweaty, and Haku sensed breathlessness hiding under her words. She'd obviously just run there with everything she had.

"I heard some slugs gossiping, they said that she's just about how old Sen would be now!" Rin now loomed inches above Haku, a wide and ecstatic grin on her face.

Haku stared at her. How would the other workers know of Chihiro's arrival? She had gone straight to the boiler room with him, and hadn't left.

"Where'd they see her?" Haku asked, suddenly fearing someone had spotted them in the garden.

"I don't know much, but I heard they saw her just out front, just as the lamps were being lit!" Rin told him excitedly. Haku was even more confused. He and Chihiro were in the boiler room and just going to sleep at sunset. There was no way that they'd spotted Chihiro in front of the establishment at that hour…

'Unless…' Haku narrowed his glimmering eyes in thought, drawing the only possible conclusion.

"Hmmmm…." The shifting form of Chihiro gave a little moan, making Rin jump with a curse. "R-Rin?" Chihiro murmured, coming out of her sleep to the woman's voice. She sat up in her blankets, staring half-asleep at Haku, Kamaji and Rin.

"Sen!" How'd you get down here?" Rin asked, confused, but happy to see her young friend nonetheless.

"Sen wasn't the human who's upstairs." Haku told her calmly coming to stand between Rin and Chihiro, to ensure that his conclusion got to the woman.

"There are two human girls in the bath house…" He told her thoughtfully.

"Two?" Chihiro blinked, coming to life at the mention of another human.

"Yeah, apparently they're someone your age!" Rin told her. "The welcome slugs told me that she was found just outside the Bath house entrance just as the lamps were lighting. I think I heard something like she was looking for something…Chihiro…Cheerio...or something…I thought they were all talking about you, but--" Rin informed them all casually with her hands on her hips.

Chihiro looked wide eyed at the woman. Haku had frozen as well.

"Did you say she was looking for Chihiro?" Chihiro cried, cutting Rin off as a lump formed in her throat.

"Yeah, why? You know Cheerio?" Rin answered.

"Yes, she's me!" Chihiro panicked. "So this human is a girl, my age, and was looking for me?" Chihiro pulled it all together, talking almost to herself. She pulled herself out of the blankets in deep and worried thought and approached Rin.

"Rin, where is she now?" She asked Rin with distress in her eyes. Haku stood to the side, not wishing to interfere. Rin raised her hand to touch her chin in thought.

"Uh, I think I actually heard them say that they were going to take her up to see…"

She froze, her hand falling slightly in front of her.

Chihiro stood there, stunned and staring unbelieving at Rin. Haku's breath caught in his throat. Even the sound of Kamaji's rolling mortar had suddenly ceased.

"Yubaba." Haku muttered.

Chihiro's brown eyes widened in terror. Without another word, she turned on her heel and leapt through the pen of busy soot balls, nearly crushing a few with small panicked 'sorry's and 'excuse me's.

"Chihiro!" Haku cried out, worried about her sudden behavior.

They watched as she grabbed her dry clothes off of the floor in the steam room and whipped them on just out of sight, Rin raising a stern hand to cover Haku's green eyes.

Carrying the pink uniform back across the river of coal and soot balls, she grabbed her shoes and jammed them on.

"Sen, what are you doing?" Rin asked, taken aback by the girl's madness.

"Haku," Chihiro panted, ignoring Rin for a moment. "Haku, could you take me to the top? I need to find the human girl, and hopefully stop them from getting her to Yubaba."

She stood up as she sloppily tied the last knot of her boot. She took the hair tie off her bandaged wrist and whipped it into her hair at the nape of her neck, making it glimmer as she worked it.

"You want to go up to Yubaba?" Haku asked, bewildered. Rin stared, just as confused, but not daring to interrupt.

"Not if I can avoid it." Chihiro said determinedly "Please, just help me catch up to the human girl." She pleaded, interlocking her fingers with his.

"I don't have time to explain right now, Haku!" She cried, seeing his confused and reluctant expression.

"Alright, just stay close." Haku melted, giving into the girl he'd do anything for. He took her hand and led her quickly through the servant's door.

"Thank you, Rin!" Chihiro cried before disappearing.

"What just happened here?" A confused Rin asked Kamaji seconds later as the footsteps of Haku and Chihiro died away.

----

Haku once again found himself leading Chihiro through blurred surroundings, scattering other workers who undoubtedly started rumors of Chihiro's arrival soon after they were passed. He didn't head straight up to Yubaba's office, but instead ran to the foreman.

"Foreman!" Haku barked harshly, coming to slow down gracefully just before the desk. Chihiro bumped lightly into his back from the change of pace, but he kept his attention on the Foreman.

"Ah! Master Haku! Did you have a pleasant meeting with Yubaba yesterd—" His taunt cut short, noticing Chihiro standing there. Squinting towards her direction, he squealed with surprise.

"Sen! Oh, how long it's been! We never have forgotten that you saved us from the terrible mons—" This time Haku cut him off.

Haku had his hand outstretched, using his magic to silence the frog. The foreman found his mouth unable to move, stuck halfway through the word 'monster', and stared frightfully at the powerful river spirit. The river spirit, in return, glared back with threatening eyes that told the Foreman by themselves to cooperate and give him the information he wanted.

"Tell me what you know about the human girl. Not Sen, the other one." Haku firmly demanded before lowering his spell. Chihiro watched as Haku shifted into the stone Haku that she'd met a long while ago. Around her she heard a variety of whispers.

"_Ooh, it's Sen! She's returned!"_ an excited slug girl proclaimed.

"_Two humans in the bath house at once?"_ grumbled a frog's voice. _"The place is gonna start to stink worse than a stink spirit!"_

"The human girl…Oh, yes, well, she was found outside by the welcome frogs, who headed out to greet customers. They brought her in here, to me, and they told me she'd been out there, calling for a Chihiro or Cheerio, or something." The nervous Foreman explained.

Chihiro flinched at the second time her name had been butchered. Haku stared at him relentlessly, commanding him to continue with his menacing dragon eyes.

"I-I called Yubaba, to tell her the situation, and uh, she told me to get the girl escorted up to her office…" The frog continued, sweat dripping down his oddly shaped head.

"Where is the girl now?" Haku glared at him.

"Oh! Uh, heh, she just left not…five minutes ago?" The foreman estimated, wrinkling his face in thought. "She is being escorted up there by a couple of slug girls. She was a bit flustered, but she calmed down when Yubaba told me to tell her, that she knew where Chihiro was…"

Chihiro, still standing behind Haku, turned on the spot and ran towards the stairs that led to the final lift to Yubabas level, her hiking boots making distinct vibrations as they hit the wooden ground.

Haku, not bothering with the foreman anymore, chased after the girl. Chihiro was ahead and heading for a large group of slug and frog workers. They all cheered when they saw her coming their way, immediately recognizing her as their savior who'd chased the misunderstood creature, No-Face out of the Bath house.

They swarmed around her as if she were a huge star running into a group of loving fans.

"_Sen!" _

"_Sen, where've ya been?"_

"_I haven't seen you in so long, Sen!"_

Chihiro fought her way through the crowd, to no success.

"Please, excuse me, I have to get through here!" She pleaded, desperately trying to push her way through her excited fans.

Haku came up fast behind her, flying just above the ground as he did first trying to get Chihiro into the bath house six years ago.

"You heard her, move out of the way!" He yelled ahead.

Collecting Chihiro's small hand in his own, he flew through the crowd with the girl in tow, forcefully parting the sea of slugs and frogs. Making it past another swarm of fans, and up a few flights of stairs, Haku gracefully landed them back on their feet, where they continued running across the huge bridge at a break-neck speed.

On the other side of the bridge, was the lift that went to Yubabas level. Haku commanded the door open with a wave of his hand, and it obeyed, letting the dragon and Chihiro run in and wait for the ride to be over. Haku pulled the lever, and leaned against the side of the box, panting and begging his muscles to stop shaking.

"Haku, are you alright?" Chihiro asked, worried about him. She'd never seen him this worn out, especially after such a short trip.

"Yes, don't worry about it, Chihiro," He forced his voice to show no shakes. "I'm just still a little weak from yesterdays…incident…" He told her.

He tried to reassure the still-concerned Chihiro with a little smile, but knew it was fake. He knew he was more than just a little weak, he was exhausted. His muscles all screamed in protest, and he was surprised he conjured that much magic to begin with. This incident with Yubaba had really left a significant dent in him.

'She must have enchanted it to really last...' he thought to himself, trying desperately to catch his breath before Chihiro became more concerned. 'This is not good. I won't be able to protect Chihiro if I need to in this state…'

"Chihiro…Why are you so intent on going after this girl?" he asked finally, realizing she now had the time on the lift to give him the gist of her situation.

"Because…" Chihiro said quietly. "A human girl. My age. Looking for me. There's only one person I know, my age, that would have followed me into this world. She's the only one who would even care where I was going so secretively." Chihiro fought back the lump in her throat. She looked back up at Haku with big brown and pensive eyes.

"Shizuka." She told him simply. Turning her face to the closed lift door as it hummed slowly up the track, she explained. "My best and only friend in the human world."

Haku looked at the girl, suddenly understanding why she had acted so erratically in the boiler room; She'd gone to change clothes as to not frighten and confuse her friend further. She begged him to get her up to Yubaba's before the witch used her trickery to bring Shizuka harm or trap her name with a contract. So Yubaba couldn't turn her into a pig.

"I regret to think that she'd have already made it to Yubabas office by now…" Haku told her quietly. "But I don't think she'll turn her into a pig, yet."

"She was looking for me…so Yubaba will know I'm here." Chihiro put together with narrowed brown eyes. "She's going to use Shizuka to try and get my location…That's the only explanation for not turning her into a pig already…but then what? What does Yubaba want from me?" Chihiro looked to Haku for the answers. Her brown eyes held the same fear in them as the time that he'd found her crouched behind a spirit shop, when she was beginning to disappear.

'Oh no…' Haku suddenly realized. 'I wonder if this Shizuka has had any food of this world…' He began to rummage through his uniforms breast pocket.

He was relieved to find a small rice cake that he'd swiped for himself hours ago when he was snooping in the kitchen for soup to give Chihiro. It was still neatly wrapped in paper, and he must have forgotten he'd had it.

"Chihiro, take this." He said, giving her the onigiri. "You'll have to give it to Shizuka if she hasn't eaten anything yet. It's a good thing I remembered now, or she wouldn't take it from me…"

"Oh…Thank you, Kohaku…You always think of everything," Chihiro smiled gratefully as she coaxed the wrapped morsel into her pants pocket.

Hearing her speak his true name, even in the heat of things, made Haku melt all over again. He was getting quite used to this new sensation of 'melting'.

The lift began to near its final stop, the tackiest hallway of any world that Haku could imagine. Haku gathered up all of the strength he could, and decided to just run through the hallways to conserve his arcane energy for later, when he prayed he didn't need it.

Grasping Chihiros warm hand, he gently squeezed, telling her through the contact that he'd do anything to protect her, and her friend Shizuka. Nothing would happen to her while he was alive. He promised her that.

The door of the lift sidled open.

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Another cliffie! Well, tomorrow I'll get the next chapter up, assuming my internet doesn't decide to go into another coma… -whacks computer again- But right now, it is late, and my eyes are tired from staring at this white screen for so long…

'Til later, then!


	13. A New World

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : A little change of pace in this chapter, and very fun to write! Read and enjoy!

Chapter 13—A New World

She'd seen the scratches. She'd seen the scraped knees. She'd even seen the pants that were hidden in her friend's shallow hamper; they had freshly torn holes at the knees, fitting right in to the mystery of the girl's bloody knees, they were covered with grass stain. The bottoms of the legs were hemmed with wet mud.

Looking out the window, Shizuka noted the rain hammering the window in her best friend, Chihiro's room. Chihiro had gone off to freshen up in her bathroom in the hall, and Shizuka had noticed the pair of jeans in the hamper that wasn't there the night before. She sat on her friend's comfortable bed, glaring at the rain that assaulted the window, the stressed pair of pants in her hanging hand.

Yes, Shizuka's best friend was up to something. What, she didn't know. But she knew it had something to do with her daydreams, which remained pretty much constant throughout the six years that she'd known the poor girl. She was so easily distracted, came to school with troubled looks, and constantly got in trouble for day dreaming. Chihiro was the sweetest girl, but a complex one.

Shizuka placed the jeans carefully back into the hamper, buried under a single sweater that Chihiro had set on top of it in hopes of hiding her secret. She heard the footsteps of her friend in the bathroom, followed shortly by the opening of the door.

Shizuka glanced once more at the hamper, making sure it was the way she had found it. She didn't want Chihiro to know how worried she was about her. It was strange, she wanted to help her friend, but she could never come out straight and tell the girl that she worried over her distance from the human race.

"Sorry for the delay, do you need to use the bathroom?" Chihiro said politely to her friend, coming in the room.

"No, it's fine," Shizuka reassured her friend. "It was really fun, like always," Shizuka smiled, recalling the night before when they'd shared another collection of fun times worthy of bragging about at school when boredom kicked in during their extra hours.

"I'll see you later, Chi!" she called through the hallway as she walked towards the door to escort herself out. Chihiro and she were such good friends; they had even given each other keys to one another's house. The only precondition to using their keys was to call ahead.

Shizuka ran through the rain with her umbrella to her house down the street.

Seeing that no one was home, she decided to take a walk to town.

"I still have a bit of money to blow…" She told herself, grabbing what money she had left off her bedroom desk. She started down the decline to the road.

Watching as the cars zoomed through puddles of rain, her eye drifted over to the forest. The same spot Chihiro has been staring at. Turning her body to match with her eyesight, she wondered.

"What did she see over there?" she asked herself. "She was having a hallucination, I know it." Shizuka glumly told the ground. She was growing more and more concerned for her friend Chihiro by the day.

For a while before summer break started, Chihiro had always come to school, distressed and detached, sometimes even in a panic. People started to talk, saying that there was trouble in her family life.

Shizuka knew it wasn't true, Chihiro told her everything, and besides that, she had met her parents a number of times in the last six years, and the meetings had never been anything short of pleasant. They were nice, just not often home from work.

---

"Hey, Shizuka," the girl heard a voice calling her as she sat in a little ice cream café in town.

She had a strawberry ice cream cone in her hand, and she realized that she'd been eating it in a trance. She was taking a rest on the way home from the shopping she'd done that early afternoon. She had been out for four hours, and she noted it was three o'clock.

She looked up to see a boy from her school, Shugi, looming over her table. As much as a guy as short as Shugi could loom, anyway. What he lacked in vertical stature, he more than compensated with brazen taunting and sarcasm, and of course, his horizontal stature.

"Whaddya want, Shugi?" She asked, not bothering to hide her annoyance. This kid was always bugging her, mostly about her friendship with Chihiro. He said such rude things about her, it made her really want to hit him, even in school…Not only did he say things _about_ Chihiro, but he said things _to_ her as well. Sometimes Shizuka had to be physically held back from hitting the little tramp when he confronted Chihiro herself. She never understood why Chihiro just took it, Nearly everyone in their class had hit the guy at least once out of frustration for his personality.

"I just saw Window Watcher run like a freaking lunatic into the forest about an hour ago," Shugi bragged, as if he'd just accomplished some great feat.

"Oh, really." Shizuka yawned. He always made things like that up. "And for the record, 'Window Watcher' has a name, and I suggest you use it like a civilized person, before something _unfortunate_ happens." She growled, her temper starting to flare just from being in his presence.

"Seriously, I did." Shugi nagged loudly, taking his own invitation to take a seat at her table. "She was running down the hill, or more accurately, falling, then she just stands at the bottom of the hill, staring at that overgrown pathway into the forest like the idiot she is…"

Shizuka had stopped listening. 'Staring into that overgrown pathway' echoed through her mind. No. She couldn't have…Could she?

The scratches. They could have come from the under brush trying to get through that little gap in the plants…The scrapes on her knees and the grass stains. She was always clumsy, she must have fallen down the hill…The mud on the hem of her pants. Obviously it had just started raining when she went out behind Shizukas back.

"Shizuka? Hey! Yoohooooo?" Shugi said annoyingly, waving his chubby hand in front of Shizukas face. Slapping it down, she glared back at him.

"When'd you say she ran into the forest?" Shizuka shot at Shugi.

"Oh, I'd say, an hour, hour and a half…" Shugi replied, contorting his chubby face in thought. He suddenly looked at her, his small piggy eyes widened. "W-wait, you actually believe me!"

Shizuka stood up, ignorant to any further conversation with the annoyance. The girl started walking away, throwing the remainder of her cone away on her way and bringing objection from the chubby kid behind her.

Chihiro had gone into the forest while she was sleeping. And now she'd gone in again! Something was drawing her to that forest, and Shizuka had decided right there to go find out what.

On her way to drop of her stuff in her house, she made sure that Chihiro wasn't home. Whipping out her cell phone, she called the girls house.

"C'mon, pick up….pick up…" She paced her room. "Prove that annoying little bastard wrong, Chi!"

The answering machine. Cursing, Shizuka threw her phone to her bed.

She hurried to her closet, and dug out some warmer clothes. A long sleeve black T-shirt with her favorite band name on it, her dry jeans, and a black hoodie. Pulling the hood over her head, she rummaged for her weather boots. She left her mother a note, claiming to be at Chihiros again, and sprinted out the door.

She ran down the grassy hill as fast as she could manage, and suddenly couldn't blame Chihiro for nearly splitting her knees open. Shizuka finally reached the little pathway to the forest, and shot through the tiny opening. In her rush, she felt a sting as the bush on her right decided to attack her cheek. Yes, this was definitely where Chihiro had gotten the scratches on her arms.

Wiping the blood that seeped from her cut and mixed with the rain, Shizuka stood up and saw that a cobblestone path that was overgrown in moss and weeds led her vision to a bend in the path, and continued for who knew how long, to who knew where.

Hoping to the heavens that Chihiro had stuck on the path, she followed it, in a hurried walk, waiting for it to end. Finally she broke into a run, not stopping for breath until she saw, looming at the end of the path, a big red entrance.

She sprinted closer, for inspection, slowing her speed until she stood just before the small mossy statue in the way. Looking at it, it reminded her of a woman with a huge grin on her face. Why it was just arbitrarily placed there, she didn't know.

Her attention turned back to the ominous building before her. Covered in vines, it looked old and beaten down by the weather. It had a sign, high above, but it was far from legible. Then her eyes met the tunnel just behind the little statue. Panting, the black haired girl looked around for any other place Chihiro might have gone around the structure. It was densely surrounded by trees of all sizes. She doubted Chihiro would or could squeeze through them, when there was a tunnel to the other side anyway.

Taking in some breath to calm her nerves, she walked towards the entrance. It loomed over her and seemed to howl at her in the rain and wind. There was something weird about this doorway, she could tell. Looking back, she did a double take. The statue was still looking at her as rain pattered on it's little grimacing face.

"Weird…" Shizuka muttered to herself. "Just freakin' weird."

She built herself up, and walked into the tunnel.

Shizuka listened to her footsteps echoing around her in the arched tunnel, the clack of her boots on the stone happily bouncing off the walls behind her. She could see the end of the tunnel, even faint flashes of lightning. She was glad for the momentary relief from the rain, but she knew she'd soon be out in it again.

"This really is a pointless building…It has no interior at all, except for this tunnel…" Shizuka muttered to herself. The wind howled through the tunnel, blowing her forward slightly, as if in rebuttal for accusing the structure of being useless.

Light filled her vision as she emerged on the other side, to find a spacious room, with high, plain, church-like ceilings, adorned with…park benches and bird baths?

She walked through the odd room, and found the door to the outside. She gasped in amazement to see that the forest had disappeared. Instead, there was a huge field, with grass that waved and battled the wind and the rain, and strange stones that reminded her of the two faced woman on the other side of the tunnel.

Lightning played across the open skies, followed closely by their companion thunders. Through the mist, the lightning illuminated a little group of buildings, like the edge of a small town.

"Funny…I don't remember there being a town over here…" She said, stomping off in the mud up the sloping field. Glancing back, she saw mountains behind the building she'd just exited.

"What!" She freaked out. "That's where my house is supposed to be…I knew there was something weird about that stupid building…"

The building, in response, howled back at her, and at the same time, told her it was four o' clock with four deep gongs. Checking her own watch, she exhaled breath.

"Well, at least I'm in the same time zone…"

She trudged on, crossing a little valley of what looked to be river rocks, before stepping onto some great stone steps. Another statue at the top of the flight was carved like a frog.

"These people sure do have weird taste in decoration…" Shizuka muttered, remembering the stones she'd already passed.

In the rain, she saw that it was a little town, but one that seemed to be lacking in people and occupation. Not one chimney emitted smoke. Japanese lanterns hung all over the street, lined them, really. Shizuka thought for a moment that there may've been some festival recently, for all of the festive lanterns that hung there. Everything was a café or a restaurant. None of them seemed to be open, or even in business. No one roamed the streets, and she couldn't see anybody through any windows. This was the place that fascinated her friend so much? An abandoned party town?

"Chihiro!" She called, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Chihiroo, where are you?"

Shizuka paced through various side streets, up oddly placed flights of stairs, finding more strange sculptures, including one that resembled a fish head. The confused girl even knocked on random doors, looking for her lost friend. She found herself wondering for an hour or so, until she found a vast stone stairway, leading to a tall Japanese garden lantern.

On her way to the stairway, she noticed an enticing aroma to her right, noticing the one restaurant that seemed to have a sign of life. Shizuka walked in, glancing around and calling for anyone who might be in charge.

"Hello? Anyone back there!" She yelled, leaning over the counter and barstools. "Hey! Come out if you can hear me!"

Several plates with heaps of various and sometimes strange looking foods called to her desperately with their aromas, but Shizuka merely frowned, discovering that the place was as empty as any other establishment she'd yet seen.

"Chihiro! It's me, Shizuka!" She called desperately through the rain and lightning, joining once more with the main path that led to the great stairway. "Anyone!"

Sighing, the tired blue-eyed girl trudged up the stone steps. Sitting on the top one, she gave another sigh and lay back on the wet stone, letting the rain fall on her face and cleanse her bloody scratch that she received from the bush.

"Where the heck is that girl!" She asked the sky angrily. It only replied with a burst of thunder that rippled the ground beneath her and made a loud rattling noise to her left.

She tilted her head to investigate, seeing a long bridge leading to an immense structure that nearly made her jaw drop. Lifting herself off of the ground, she stared at the thing, and concluded that the glass sliding doors that bordered the middle floors had to be the rattling objects.

Shizuka stood up, and walked slowly closer to the building. It was sitting on a small cliff that had isolated itself from the rest of the earth, jutting straight up and supporting this enormous building on top of itself. She noticed a small, steaming fountain to the right of the entry way.

"A bath house?" She whispered. She noticed that there appeared to be a sliver of smoke coming from the towering smokestack. This place was the only occupied one? "Maybe Chi is in there. It looks like a huge place…Huh? The sun's going down."

She noticed the significant change of brightness in the sky. Behind her, the large garden lantern began to glow.

"I hope the place isn't closing up…"

She began to sprint across the proud wooden bridge, and up to the entrance doors.

"Hello? Hello, I'm looking for Chihiro!" She shouted, knocking on the doors. "Chihir—" She nearly fell in as the doors opened, revealing some rather interesting and surprised-looking people.

They were dressed in nice little yukatas, and they stood not even taller than herself. Their heads were the most odd of all, their whole faces protruded from their head, and the shape reminded Shizuka of a lizards head.

"Ah, excuse me, I'm looking for a girl, named Chihiro..?" Shizuka asked, trying to divert her attention from the appearance of the odd people. They suddenly winced, and held their snouts, only briefly after looking at Shizuka in the face.

"Chihiro?" one of them repeated, disgust fringing his voice. "We haven't heard of anyone called Chihiro around here, _Human_."

Shizuka cocked her head, curious as to why they were being so derogatory towards the fact that she was _obviously_ a human. She had no clue in the world what the heck they were, but she at least wasn't making snide remarks about it…

"But I followed her here!" Shizuka wrinkled her nose, waving away the insult for a moment. "She's around here somewhere, I…!"

The creatures suddenly turned to one another, their snouts still covered with their three-fingered hands, as they gave her their own glares.

"Ohh, Yubaba's not gonna like this…" Shizuka heard one mutter.

"Damn human, had to show up right now, before the rush! She's gonna stink up the whole place! Scare everyone away!" One was flustering behind his hands

"Yubaba? Who's Yubaba? " Shizuka asked. "And quit complaining, I don't stink!"

They ignored her, and continued whispering to one another.

"Did she eat any of the food in town? She ain't a pig…Not since Sen was here, has a human gotten past that café of food."

"Well, I guess we should just send her up to the boss, she'll know what to do…"

"AHH! The guests are beginning to arrive, what should we do? They can't see we've allowed a human into our midst! It'll destroy business!" Shizuka saw a particularly panicked creature pointing towards the other side of the bridge.

"Get out there and stall them. Make something up, just until we get the human up to Yubaba…"

Making way for a few of the creatures to run past, Shizuka grew tired of being ignored. Something on the other side of the bridge, however, caught her eye.

Suddenly the creatures that were talking about this 'Yubaba' looked pretty normal. Across the bridge, the little bath house creatures were making up excuses not to let in a strange assortment of other creatures, creatures that Shizuka couldn't even begin to describe, into the bath house. All because…she was there? Where exactly was she?

"Hello? The human girl's a bit confused, here…" Shizuka said in a voice that she heard as shaky coming from her mouth.

"You, come with me," a door creature commanded, as he turned and walked down hallways that forked into cubicles with varying sizes of tubs in them.

Workers, some who looked like normal people, some who didn't, stopped and looked at her as she passed. Whispers swirled around, forming rumors as she followed the strange creature through the strange bath house. One thing was crystal clear, Shizuka was not in Japan anymore…

"Foreman!" The creature leading her called to a desk ahead. A creature with the same oddly shaped head and a great orange mustache looked up from his work. "Foreman, we've got a human. Get Yubaba on the phone!"

Shizuka stood quietly as she tried to figure out what was going on around her, why she was in such a strange place, and if Chihiro had really come through the barrier and into this freaky bath house. Looking at her feet, she saw the floor. Through her feet?

"What the…" She lifted her hands, and could see the floor through them. Her large eyes grew wider as she looked at the foreman…through her hands.

"I'm disappearing!" She couldn't stop herself from crying out, making the foreman and the creature that led her to him look at her, unconcerned. She heard cackles coming from the spectators around her, employees who had stopped what they were doing to watch the human wallow in confusion.

"Hmm? Ah, yes, ma'am, she is disappearing, the process has begun!" The foreman cheerfully said into the phone.

'What process..!' Shizuka responded silently.

"Hmm….yes…Escorts?...Alright, done and done, Yubaba ma'am!"

"Wait! Where's Chihiro! Have any of you met a Chihiro! I followed her here!" Shizuka blurted more to the phone than to anyone. Maybe this Yubaba person knew where her friend was. She was desperate for information, and the creatures around her were no help at all. The foreman turned the phone back to his ear.

"Hmm, yes?...Tell her…Oh…OK…Human!" he commanded her. "Yubaba says she knows where you can find your Chihiro. You just have to let, ah…These girls, escort you to her office." He said, pointing to some random girls. They glared at him something fierce. "Orders from the top, slugs, now just do your job and get it over with!" he retorted.

Yubaba. Did Chihiro really know this person?

Shizuka allowed herself to follow the glowering "slugs" as the foreman had called them. They led her up several flights of wooden stairs, then across another proud bridge the overlooked the whole display of baths, each containing a different creature or group of creatures, each more strange than the last. She paid more attention to the bath house guests than she found was needed, and found herself falling behind. Hustling at a sloppy jog, she caught up to the slug-girls midway across the bridge. At last they reached a lift on the other side of the bridge, and the slugs let her to enter by herself.

"We're gonna leave you here. The lift will go all the way to the top, that's where you wanna go. Just pull the lever." They told her, boredom in their voices. She pulled the lever like they said, and watched them disappear behind the closing doors. She looked down at her hands, they had continued to slowly fade away.

"Where the heck did you lead me, Chi!" She asked the light at the top of the car.

The doors inched open at the top, just as the slugs had promised. Shizuka found herself in a strange hallway, full of huge urns and tapestries of intricate and colorful designs. The colors began to affect her stomach. She wasn't having a good day to begin with, but now this? She started down the cavernous halls, coming to a large door, with an odd, and quite ugly knocker. She put her transluscent hand on the door handle, and…

"What? Another stuck up human who doesn't think she needs to knock?" The door knocker scathingly retorted, sending Shizuka about a foot back in surprise. "I swear, you and Sen are truly one and the same…" The knocker added, rolling its ugly eyes around disturbingly. Shizuka hesitated, this was getting weirder and weirder by the minute…And who the heck was Sen!

Her shirt and jacket suddenly felt like it had been grabbed, and she found herself being pulled by some invisible force, a foot in the air, through several doorways that opened just as she was about to crash into them, and down another hall until the force threw her on her knees into a room that still annoyed her senses.

"Owww…" she whimpered, holding her knees.

"Quiet, you want to see this Chihiro of yours or not?" a cold voice that she recognized from the knocker commanded from a desk to her right. She looked to see a huge old woman's head, staring at her. This was Yubaba? An old lady with an oversized head?

"You…know Chihiro?" Shizuka asked her nervously, standing up. The woman grinned at her, her eyes flashing in the pulsating light of the fireplace behind the human girl.

"What do you know of the girl called Chihiro?" Yubaba asked her with a raspy voice.

"Well, everything," Shizukas face darkened "…Until I followed her to this place…now I'm not so sure…"

Yubaba laughed in her throat, looking down and scribbling something on paper.

"So, young Chihiro hasn't told her best friend about her adventures here?" She cooed with a hint of mocking. She turned her giant head again to look at the girl, who was beginning to blend into the fireplace behind her.

"I have a way for you to solve that little problem," The old spirit told her in a candy-coated voice, indicating her transparency.

"You…You do? How?"

With a wave of her large, clawed finger, Yubaba sent a paper through the air to Shizuka's hands, a pen following.

"It's a job contract. It'll give you back your disappearing body." Yubaba lied to the girl.

"I can't get a job here, I live in Japan! With humans!" Shizuka blurted. "I have to get home soon, I can't sign up for a job I can't hold up!"

"You're not going home for a while, dearie." Yubaba said, grimacing at the blue-eyed human girl. "Besides, it never stopped your friend Chihiro, and she was only ten years old!"

Shizuka was silent.

'Chihiro had a _job_ with this old hag!' Shizuka glowered at the vulgar-looking rug beneath her, chewing nervously on her bottom lip. 'None of this is making any sense at all!'

"Are you going to sign, or do you want to completely fade away? Signing that is the only way to keep me from turning you into coal right now as well. I suggest you do it." Yubaba's wide and wrinkled mouth twisted into a grin.

Shizuka frowned underneath her damp hood. This old witch wasn't giving her a choice. How would signing a contract going to bring the rest of her body back? With a helpless sigh, the girl knelt to the fireplace, using the stone before it as a writing surface, signing her name on the paper, watching her almost gone hand work as she did it.

Standing up, she gave the paper to the woman. Looking the contract over, Yubaba found the kanji that formed 'Shizuka'. Hovering her other hand over the paper, she waved part of the girls name off of the paper.

"Shizuka, hmm?" She clasped her hands over the levitating kanji. "From now on, your name is Izu. You understand me?" Yubaba told her dominantly.

Shizuka looked at the woman, and nodded obediently, her eyes slinking off.

"You will address me as m'am, and nothing else, you understand?" Yubaba continued, playing with her prey.

"Yes ma'a—" Shizuka was interrupted by Yubaba motioning for her to be silent for a moment. They were both able to hear a faint crash, followed by growing footsteps running toward them. Shizuka stared at the witch, not knowing what to do or what to make of the noises. She really didn't know what to make of anything in this place.

Suddenly, the footsteps slowed and hadn't even ceased before the door flew open with a huge crash.


	14. Yubaba's Offer

Chapter 14— Yubaba's Offer

Splinters flew from the door, making Shizuka raise her arms as shields, only to see that the shards went straight through her. She hadn't gotten better at all. Looking back up, she saw two figures in the doorway.

First she saw a beautifully handsome boy that looked not much older than she was, with dark, green-looking hair, long and with straight-cut bangs. His hair seemed to flow in the air, fighting the cloth that bound it at the nape of his neck. His eyes were intense and emerald green, shining brightly, even in the dim fire light of the room. He was wearing a white top and blue bottom, that she had remembered seeing on other male workers down in the baths. His fist that he'd obviously just used to break the door down, though it made no sense how, with bandages on it and such a slender arm, still hung in the air. Behind his outstretched arm, stood a girl…

"Chihiro?" Shizuka cried, lowering her arms and staring with her wide, sky-blue eyes.

The boy's hand slowly fell, and Chihiro ran to her friend, digging hurriedly in her pocket. Grabbing Shizuka's shoulder, Chihiro pulled out the wrapped rice cake.

"Here, Shi, eat this…" she showed the rice to her friend. Shizuka looked at her, puzzled. "Hurry, you have to eat some food of this world, or else you'll completely disappear!" Chihiro found herself saying the same thing that Haku had told her years ago.

Shizuka took the rice cake, and slowly took a small bite, still skeptical, but convinced by her friends concern.

"Haku, really, did you have to break down the door!" Yubaba fumed, putting the door back together and on the hinges with a few waves of her hands. "You don't even have the authority to go barging in this room anymore, you gave that up! You want another punishment!"

"See, you're ok!" Chihiro meanwhile said to her friend, taking hold of her now solid hands.

Wincing at the sound of Yubaba's threat, Chihiro tried to take the heat off of Haku, who was bearing the brunt of Yubaba's wrath.

"Hey, Granny," Chihiro built up her confidence to face the witch. "If it's me you want, then stop yelling at Haku!" She declared defiantly, looking Yubaba directly in the eyes.

"You told them to bring up Shizuka, because you knew I'd follow, didn't you? Well, what do you want?" Chihiro's slender form stood tall and confident, her eyes blazing in the light of the glowing fire to her right.

Haku watched silently, admiring the girl for all the courage she'd collected. She'd changed so much by the time she left six years back, and she kept the change. She was seeing right through Yubaba's plan, and the old hag knew it.

Haku looked over at Yubaba, wanting to see her face when she knew that Chihiro had figured it out, but something was wrong.

The old witch spirit was grinning.

Haku suddenly sensed Yubaba's cunning nature, and knew something wasn't right. She was planning something, alright. He glared at Yubaba, watching as she waltzed over to her desk, picking up a piece of paper that displayed her seal on it.

"I was merely offering your friend a job, with my generosity!" Yubaba smiled menacingly, turning the paper in her hand to better catch the light.

Chihiro turned to her friend, terrified.

"Did you sign the contract, Shi?" She asked her, fear evident in her voice. Shizuka watched the fear rise in Chihiro's brown eyes, and sunk lower into confusion.

"Y-yeah…She lied to me!" The frightened Shizuka pointed at Yubaba, recalling that it hadn't been the contract, but Chihiro's provision of food that saved her. "She told me that signing that thing would stop my body from disappearing!"

Chihiro's heart sank, remembering what Haku had told her about signing one of Yubaba's contracts.

"Tear it up!" Chihiro found herself suddenly yell at Yubaba, who'd found Shizuka's contract a home in one of her desk drawers. "Tear up Shizuka's contract!"

"No, unfortunately Izu is my employee now, and a much needed one, my supply of lazy bums has decreased significantly since you left. Workers ended up asking for deals on their own contracts _in droves_…" Yubaba sighed. Haku was watching her intently; his narrowed emerald eyes focused on her every move. She peered up from her desk to add, "…So, I turned them into pigs."

Shizuka stared at the woman, unbelieving at what she was hearing. First the threat of turning her into coal, and now this rubbish of turning workers into pigs!

Chihiro stood there, between Shizuka and the witch, her fists clenched and shaking with rage at her sides, still glaring at Yubaba.

"How about you, Sen? Want to renew your contract and keep your friend company?" Yubaba continued, smiling bitter-sweetly at Chihiro.

Shizuka stared at the back of Chihiro's head for a moment at the third mention of this person called 'Sen.' Chihiro was Sen?

"Or do you want to leave my bath house immediately? Because those are your choices." Yubaba continued matching Chihiro's glare.

Haku remained silent at the freshly fixed door, trying to place Yubabas next move. He felt his feet glued to the ground, unable to decide to come to Chihiro's aid yet or to let her fight her own battle. Why would Yubaba be asking Chihiro and Shizuka to become her employees?

'The number of employees has gone down as she said, but still, turning to humans for work? Yubaba couldn't be that desperate…' he tried to sort it all out in his mind.

"Rip it up." Chihiro was staring the woman down, holding her ground. "You can have your grudge against me for losing you money, workers and an apprentice, but you have no right to bring my best friend into this! This is between you and me!" She felt her knuckles going white from the rage that coursed through her body. No way was Yubaba going to take her one true human friend from her like this.

"Well, ok, if that's your attitude, I guess I'll just turn this girl into a pig like what happened to your parents, if you can't make a decision." Yubaba told her.

Chihiro was silent, trying to fit any pieces that she had together. Yubaba was trying, for some reason, to get her back into contract. She knew Chihiro wouldn't leave her friend there, and she wouldn't let her turn into a pig. That only left taking the contract again.

'But why?' She screamed in her head, looking for the missing piece. She opened her mouth to speak, but Haku had suddenly blocked Yubaba from view.

"Yubaba, Chihiro won her freedom fairly from you six years ago. You made a deal!" He reminded her. "Chihiro is rightfully free!"

"Yes, and part of the deal was that she went back to the human world, too, Haku, but here she is, back for more!" Yubaba growled. "That deal is meaningless anymore."

"A deal is a deal, Yubaba!" Haku slammed his hands onto her desk, immediately wishing he hadn't, for the wounds that were still in his palms. With his fists' collision with the desk, his magic flared, sending a shockwave out from them, scattering papers and jewels and all other contents flying in every direction off the desk's surface. The wave met Yubaba, only rippling her clothes and hair as he met his glare with narrow eyes.

"I don't know what you're planning, but I'll fight it with all I have to keep Chihiro and her friend out of your way!"

He suddenly felt the old witch take over his body again, making his blood run hot and fiery once more, the pressure growing alarmingly fast in his head. He brought his hands to hold his throbbing head, the only thoughts in his head were about her, behind him watching.

'No…not in front of her…' His whole body tensed as he fell to the floor, cursing Yubaba with every fiber of his being. She was just using him to get her to sign the contract! He was used to being her tool, but this…

Chihiro saw Haku falter, saw his muscles tensing, his hands rising through the air to clasp his head. She heard a moan emitting him, and knew at once. Yubaba was using the same torture techniques on him that she'd witnessed in her vision. For a second, Haku staggered backwards, almost falling into Chihiro, before collapsing to the ground in front of her, holding his head and suppressing his yells of pain.

"HAKU!" She cried, falling to her own knees and reaching for his shoulders before wondering if that would hurt him more. "Leave him alone!" She cried helplessly to Yubaba.

Shizuka came to her knees behind her and grasped the brunette girl's shoulders, trying to comfort her friend.

'He's already so weak…I know he was just hiding how exhausted he really was in the lift…' Chihiro thought desperately, watching the boy's quivering shoulders as he kneeled on the rug.

"He's growing weaker by the second Sen," Yubaba told her. Chihiro whirled to face the woman above her, sending her tail of brown hair flying behind her. "He won't be able to endure it for much longer. What'll it be?" She sent a contract through the air with a pen as a companion.

'No….Chihiro….' Haku told her, unable to mouth the words, the pressure beginning to take over his head, his vision going dark. He felt his remaining energy drain as his muscles burned and ached, adding pain onto soreness. He couldn't give in to Yubabas punishment, he couldn't. He had to protect her. He promised her…

Chihiro stared at the floating pen and paper that had just shoved themselves between her and the dragon. Yubaba met her gaze when the girl looked up at the witch, full of spite. Haku emitted a painful groan as the sweat glistened on his forehead that just barely brushed the carpet. It was the same as her nightmare, he was completely folded on the ground, his still gorgeous hair laying in a pile beneath his face, sweat and tears draining into it.

She had no choice, if she hesitated any longer, Haku was going to die, right there in front of her. A bead of sweat traveled down her own face as she maliciously grabbed the contract and scrawled her signature on it, feeling nothing but hatred for Yubaba. Tears pulled at her eyes as the paper flew back to Yubaba, followed closely by the pen.

Haku began to relax, little by little. His body was still in a heap, shaking, and breathing laboriously. She gently pulled him back, laying his head in her lap as she stroked the brown hair in his bangs. The dragon had lost consciousness.

"Don't worry, he isn't dead." Yubaba told Chihiro scathingly as the girl fought back tears as she cradled the limp Haku in her arms. "Just get him out of here. Sen, Izu, I'd better see you at work tomorrow. As for Haku, I don't care, just get his partner, Rin or whatever to take you as assistants." She commanded them before vanishing into her residence.

Shizuka fell from her knees heavily to the floor as she watched her friend cry into the boy named Haku's hair. She had never been so confused in her life, but she knew one thing was clear about Chihiro. She was in love with this boy. Suddenly it all made sense. Why she came back here. Why she was always so distressed at school. She missed this boy that she loved so much.

She stared at the red rug beneath her, and felt a flow of guilt. If she hadn't come to this place, then Chihiro wouldn't be holding her loves lifeless body…and crying into his hair as she rocked back and forth.

'I should have just ran away when I had the chance down at the door at sunset,' she told herself, not bearing to look at her friend anymore.


	15. Explanation

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: Ah, I haven't updated this one for a while…what with my birthday party last weekend, and my newest story taking over my brain and refusing to let go of it until I got something done on it…Yeah that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it! Haha. But seriously, my new story, Learning to Love Again, is in the Spirited Away section, if you haven't seen it yet, check it out? I'm having fun writing it…But I guess now my two creations will have to share my attention…hmm. Anyway, this chapter's a little blah. Not much happens, but bear with me, here. I'll put up the next chapter with it in apologies. Gomen Nasaiii!

Enjoy despite the fluff. –Bows low-

Chapter 15 – Explanation

Shizuka stared at her feet through the darkness as they dangled off the edge of the boiler room deck. Far below, the train hurried past, its headlights playing off of the glassy water. It had stopped raining, but all the precipitation had left the landscape down below Shizuka to look like a sea that stretched far beyond the bath house, deeper into the spirit world. She was now wearing the bath houses uniform of work, the pink pants and purple undershirt. Chihiro had put her human clothes in the steam room to dry.

Chihiro and Shizuka had managed to help the unconscious Haku back to the boiler room, through a series of back lifts in the staff section of the resort. It was still in the dead of night, the time that Shizuka found that the bath house busily operated, so workers were bustling around, sending whispers everywhere they went as the odd trio passed, some even greeted Chihiro as 'Sen' excitedly, as she had plowed on, ignoring them.

The boiler room was a fascinating place for Shizuka, the boiler man turned out to have six arms, which were used as his main source of mobility. For a while when she and Chihiro had gotten to this room, while Chihiro tended to the injured boy, Shizuka watched as the spirit's arms grew in length in order to reach even the highest drawers in the cavernous place. He had been nice enough, from what she saw when he saw Haku, but he was still busy taking orders, the entire bath house depending on his attendance to the furnace. The soot balls were another thing. They were the boiler mans workers, and created a river of coal rocks that flowed out of one wall and to the furnace. As the soot balls emptied their loads and zoomed back for more, they stole curious looks at the newcomer, Shizuka.

"Hey…" Shizuka heard a tired voice behind her, recognizing it as her best friend. Chihiro came and sat down next to the blue-eyed girl with a light sigh. "Haku will be fine, he just needs some rest…That's what Kamaji told me as soon as he could steal a break…" Shizuka immediately determined that Kamaji was the boiler man.

The two friends bathed in the moonlight and silence.

"I guess…I owe you an explanation, Shizuka…" Chihiro finally breaking the silence and peering down at the submerged train tracks.

Shizuka looked up at her friend, finding her guilt instantly in her eyes. Chihiro took a deep breath, and told Shizuka everything about her previous visit to the spirit world. She made an effort not to leave too much out, but still have the tale end at a reasonable length. From her parents taking the wrong turn and leading them to the gateway, to her battle with No-Face and her journey to save Haku, to Haku's goodbye as she ran back to the human world. She finished, leaving a fascinated look of awe on Shizukas face. Chihiro was actually wearing a little smile again, nostalgically looking back on it.

"So that's why you're always daydreaming." Shizuka whispered, still amazed by the sheer unusual greatness of her friends story. Her eyes turned to Chihiro.

"Chi…Why didn't you ever tell me this before?" Chihiros laughing smile glowed in the moonlight.

"You wouldn't have believed me…" she told her. Looking back at the water below, she continued. "You probably would have just thought I was crazy like everybody else does in the human world." Shizukas face flushed. She was sad to say that Chihiro was right. Had she not been sitting here, with Chihiro in the middle this strange world of spirits, and without witnessing all that had happened tonight, she probably would have been just another Shugi.

"I decided long ago, for that specific reason, to never tell anyone about this place. I finally had a friend in my new neighborhood, and I didn't want you to think I was making stuff up." Chihiro added.

"So, I have been wondering for a while, Chi…" Shizuka continued. "For a while now, you've been really detached…and you always came to school upset. People started to say it was problems with your family, but I know better. It was something about this place…right?"

"I've been having dreams." Chihiro said, leaning back onto the support of her hands. "For six years I've dreamed about this place, practically every night. In every dream, Haku was there. But as the years passed, Haku began to slip from my memory. Believe it or not, every time I saw him for a while now has had his face hidden in shadow, or fog, or whatever. Until I even lost his name…." Her voice had regret in it. "I came to school upset because the dreams and the fact that I was forgetting him were still fresh in my mind and bothering me. I don't even think I noticed how I'd brought that worry to school with me..."

"So you came back, to see him again and get your memories back…" Shizuka suggested.

"Not exactly, "Chihiro said shifting nervously. "After you left, I went back to sleep, and this time I had a nightmare…You saw what Yubaba did to Haku up there, well, I saw it happening when he was being punished for waiting for me to come back, and it was so much worse. After waking up from that, I finally came back."

She went on to explain that Haku had been staying up to wait in the grassy field during the day, while working at night, and how Yubaba had finally used his own fearful thoughts against him as punishment.

"He was still exhausted when we were on the lift to come get you. He was trying to hide it, but I knew."

Shizuka stared at the sky, taking in Chihiro's words. The way she always doted on this river spirit, it was obvious to anyone with half a brain that she was in love with the guy.

"Chi, I'm sorry I led you guys into all that trouble up there with that Yubaba lady…" Shizuka apologized, still staring at a moonlit cloud passing overhead. "I'm sorry that I got you into taking this job, and getting him punished…"

"Shizuka, it- it's not your fault!" Chihiro cried, surprised at her friends guilt. For some reason, Shizuka found the name she'd been addressed as a little strange. Chihiro was right, Yubaba did steal names… "I don't know what she's planning, but you don't have to apologize for it, really!" Shizuka smiled. This was her Chihiro, never wanting to put blame on others.

For a while, they sat together in the light of the setting moon. Morning was coming, and they'd probably have to head in to get some rest before their first night of work. Everything was quiet except for the distant bustle of workers, jubilation of relaxing customers and the busy boiler.

"So, Chihiro," Shizuka suddenly broke the silence. "Has he kissed you yet?" she asked her playfully. Chihiro immediately blushed, giving her silver face a pink tint to it.

"He has, hasn't he?" Shizuka giggled, tickling Chihiro in her sides. "So? Is he good? How was it, Chi?" she continued teasing, as both girls rolled on the stone deck, laughing and battling each other with merciless tickling until they lay gasping for air in the growing light of dawn.


	16. Horizon

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : Eh, it's more fluff. But it's Haku fluff this time! –Waves a "Kohaku" flag- anywho, enjoy, I must now depart from the internet! T.T

Chapter 16— Horizon

Haku woke to the smell of coal and sulfur. Lying in his bed of blankets, he kept his eyes shut and let his other senses take in the environment around him. The smell he was sensing was obviously that of the boiler room. He had been brought back to his shelter in Kamaji's quarters, perhaps by Chihiro and Shizuka.

Making a note to thank them for bringing him all the way down, he turned to his ears for information. He didn't hear the talking of any girls, but he heard the grinding of Kamaji's roll-mortar, the sound of the soot balls throwing their loads into the furnace, and the occasional clinking of bath tokens. So it was obviously night time.

Feeling a cold, wet sensation on his forehead, he finally opened his eyes, and pulled the damp cloth off of his warm forehead. It had obviously helped with the splitting headache he had back in Yubaba's office, because it had dissipated into only a slight nagging. He was surprised to feel that his muscles were more relaxed than they had been since his first torture session with his boss.

Glancing around, the dragon saw that he and Kamaji were indeed the only ones in the boiler room. So, then where were the girls, and how long was he asleep?

"Kamaji?" Haku said quietly, rising from his futon. "Where is Chihiro?"

"Oh, She and Izu went to work not even an hour ago with Rin," Kamaji told him, not looking up from his mortar. "You've been asleep for the whole day since last night, and it's just after sunset." Kamaji continued, answering much of Haku's questions.

With a few sharp taps of Kamaji's wooden hammer, the soot balls emptied their last loads and zoomed back into the wall opposite the furnace for a break. They all looked up at the dragon on their way back, and Haku gazed back at them nonchalantly. Soon they had all disappeared into the wall, and Kamaji silently continued grinding herbs in his mortar.

So Chihiro and Shizuka had already gone to work. His heart sank. The incident last night had resulted in them both being under Yubaba's employment. Chihiro had no doubt agreed to it only when he was subjected to torture in front of her. He hugged his knees to his chest and buried his face into his arms, feeling his guilt come over him.

"One of them should be here soon to bring my food and to feed the soot balls," Kamaji informed Haku, obviously sensing the dragons despair. "It's usually Rin's job, but seeing as the circumstances…" the boiler man continued, before this time clanging his hammer onto the metal wheel next to him, signaling the soot balls to resume work and truck their heavy loads across the room again.

"She'll most likely send Chihiro to do it and to see how you're doing." Kamaji finished, twisting his head to look at the dragon that was now peeking his eyes just over his arms and through his green-brown bangs.

Haku decided to relax a little, spreading his legs out from his grasp some and leaning back onto the wall of drawers. She'd probably be here any minute, in that case.

Several minutes passed, and still no Chihiro came through the servant's door. Haku started to feel nervous again, as he had the night she'd come back; suffocated by the machinery and industry around him in the boiler room, crushed by his own feelings of guilt.

He thirsted for the outside air, to take to playful flight in his dragon form and be able to forget about everything the bath house represented to him, even if just for a moment. He thirsted for freedom, not just his but for Chihiro as well.

He wanted her and her friend to be able to leave the bath house and Yubaba's jurisdiction, to take her for a flight. Most of all, the young river spirit wanted so desperately to feel her in his arms again, to feel her warmth and give her his own.

"Kamaji, I'll just be outside for a moment," Haku finally said, getting to his feet and heading gracefully through the sea of soot balls to the back door. Kamaji nodded in understanding.

Padding with his bare feet through the steam room, he opened the heavy metal door and felt the night time breeze greet his face and tousle his hair. Breathing deep, he engulfed himself in the breezy air and shut the door behind him, closing out the industry from his senses.

The wind seemed to swirl playfully around him, welcoming the dragon back to the natural world. The weakness he still felt seemed to lift away the longer he breathed the cool air. He felt the urge to transform into his dragon form and dance with the wind high above, but he had to resist, he had to stay for Chihiro and Shizuka. They'd be there soon.

Sitting down at the edge of the deck, he looked down at the reflection of the full moon on the rippling water below. All that rain had left a sea that spread for miles.

He gazed longingly at the horizon, wishing that he could take Chihiro all the way past that ridge, wishing that they could start over, together, far from the terrible bath house. He knew he wanted to be with her, hopefully forever.

Haku smiled at the horizon, imagining having her by his side forever, always being able to see her. It was a thought that he never wanted to go away.

He felt his insides lurch, and frowning towards the stars, he remembered.

'She is a human. She has a life in the human world, and so does Shizuka.' He could sit there and wish all he wanted that he could be with her forever, but he knew in his heart that wasn't possible.

He fell backwards onto his back and felt his heart ache return to him.

"This must be why Spirits should never fall in love with humans…" He whispered glumly, his saddened green eyes staring the moon down.

The wind blew lightly over his outstretched body, caressing him and trying to soothe his sorrow. Haku had never thought he could feel this sorrowful. He was miserable when Chihiro was gone, but now…Now he was just sad and dreading the day that she'd have to leave.

"I'm being selfish again…" Haku muttered under his breath, angry with himself for being such a fool. "She's a human, and the human world is where she belongs. I have no right to think about this stuff…"

He tried to tell himself this fact under his breathe repetitively, trying to engrave it into his brain, as if doing so would make it easier to swallow and accept.

Even after several minutes of performing this ritual, however, Haku still felt the same deep sorrow. His heart was stubborn, he found, and it wouldn't let the dream of being past the horizon with her go.

"She's human, I'm being selfish…She's human…" He chanted to himself. "I have to be able to let her go when it's time…I can't be selfish about her…"

He tightly shut his eyes, but the moonlight seemed to pierce through his eyelids and shine on his mental picture of Chihiro, the human girl he loved so much, but knew that he had to let go.


	17. Advantages and a Stolen Onigiri

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: Sorry again it took me so long to get this story updated lately. Like I said, new story, birthday party, and now a new, very meanboss in my FMA video game consume my life. Not to mention my dad is trying to get me into studying for my drivers license, correspondence classes, and let's not forget… _Bible studies_. –Shudders- Organized religion is just not for me, I'm sorry…Anyway, enough of my crappy life story, onward to Chihiro's and Haku's! (Even though Haku isn't in this one…whoops..) Gomen!

Chapter 17— Advantage

Chihiro and Shizuka were working the wooden floors, cleaning them with wet rags. Chihiro had finally mastered the ability to actually _run_ the rag over the floor, a feat she had never been able to do when she was first a worker of the bath house.

It was only the two human girls cleaning the wide floor, by the orders of Yubaba. Usually, the girls would be accompanied by other young girl spirits, but Yubaba had, unsurprisingly, set them to the hardest work she could find for them.

Shizuka seemed to be having the same trouble with the chore as Chihiro once did, sending the watching worker spirits to cackle under their hands at the new and clumsy looking human.

Chihiro ran past them, scooting the wash rag over the gleaming floor.

"Don't you guys have some sort of work to do?" She retorted to them, casting a quick look of disapproval for the teasing of her friend.

The workers, however enthralled and amused by the fumbling human girl called Izu, were just as quick to take an order from their "savior" Sen. With busied murmurs and nervous laughter, the crowd that had gathered dissipated, leaving Shizuka and Chihiro to clean the floor in peace.

Chihiro, having watched the last frogs and slugs disappear to their own chores, sat down heavily on the gleaming floor with a sigh. Looking with malice at the rag in her hand, she threw it at the wooden planks beneath her.

How had this happened? She was there, in the spirit world, reunited with the young man of her dreams at last, his face and name once more in their rightful spot in her heart. And yet, here she was. Still torn from him. So close, and yet so far.

With her head resting in her dirty hand, her mind wondered briefly if Haku had awoken yet.

"Thanks for that, Chihiro…" Shizuka crawled over to her friend, catching her breath.

Chihiro lifted her head at the mention of her name. She was forgetting it, again…

"Chihiro…Ah, dammit, I'm losing my name!" She hissed, running her hands through her bangs and silently cursing Yubaba.

Shizuka looked, wide-eyed at Chihiro.

"Well, I still have it, right? That way you'll never forget it," She suggested. "And you have mine, so…"

"So we'll look after each others names for each other." Chihiro suddenly smiled, realizing this advantage over the witch who stole their names to begin with.

"Shizuka!" She playfully poked her friend in the side, reciting her name.

"Chihiro!" Shizuka responded with a giggle, matching her friend a poke.

"Um, I hate to break up the party," a voice said above them. The girls looked up to see Rin, standing above them, trying to stifle her smile and be serious. "But we've got work to do!" With that, she yanked them both up by their wrists. She took Chihiro to just inches from her face.

"Se- I mean, Chihiro, I'm going to—" Rin began in a whisper, before she was interrupted by one of the higher ranking frogs butting in.

"Rin! You and your humans are on the big tub today!" He threw a quick look at the two human girls, the quiet Shizuka in particular. "We have a big guest coming, so I suggest you get to work!" The frog commanded of her.

"Hey, wha--! Me and Haku cleaned that just a couple of days ago!" Rin called angrily after the frog who was carrying on, no doubt to deliver chore assignments to the other workers.

"Well, it's dirty again; we do have many guests every day, Rin!" The frog waved his three fingered hand indifferently in the air without looking back at them. "Orders from the top!"

"Grrr..I swear, that woman has it in for me!" Rin fumed beneath her breath. "Well, no use complaining, I guess…" She continued with a hopeless sigh, rolling up her pink sleeves and tying them back with the white ribbon on her back.

For a brief moment she had a would-be amusing thought of Yubaba sending deals and bargains to the biggest and dirtiest spirits, just to make Rin's job a harder one.

Chihiro and Shizuka exchanged nervous glances.

"Um, you were about to say something to me?" Chihiro asked nervously, approaching the still fuming Rin cautiously.

Hearing the girl behind, her, Rin spun around, remembering the few seconds before the frog condemned her once again to the dirtiest tub in the place.

"Oh yeah!" She suddenly bore a smile that she saved for the human girls she'd come to adopt as sisters. She grasped Chihiros wrist gently, and pulled her close.

"It's just about time to give Kamaji and the soot balls their food…Normally I do it, but I'm going to let you do go down there…and see how things are." She hinted at Haku in a hushed voice.

"Oh! Ok, thank you, Rin," Chihiro nodded, quickly understanding.

"I'll take Izu to the big tub and show her the ropes, and you go to the kitchens." Rin instructed Chihiro. "Just tell them that you're going to feed Kamaji, they'll give you his food and the soot ball candies. If you have to, tell them that I sent you, they'll surely give the food to you then."

Chihiro gave a quick nod, and turned to Shizuka.

"Stay with Rin, she's a good teacher," Chihiro told her friend cheerfully. Shizuka nodded, her small black ponytail bobbing behind her head. "Right, Thanks, Rin, I'll be quick!" Chihiro ran towards the kitchen, waving to her friends.

Chihiro wondered through a corridor, calling to her memory the location of the kitchens. She'd been through them once with Haku, another time when she was running from No-Face.

On her journey, she spied many a familiar patron of the baths, including the snow-colored radish spirit. He gurgled low, but friendly as she walked by, the little whiskers at his mouth wriggling animatedly. She bowed respectfully to him as she passed, laughing inwardly at herself at the thought that she'd been frightened of the jovial spirit the first time she had seen him.

Catching a glint at her right wrist, she looked fondly at the silver bracelet that bore a dragon of Haku's exact resemblance. She smiled down at it, proud of herself for making such a rare find, and wiped the water spots from the face with her pink sleeve. She made a note to engrave Haku's true name on it once she had the chance.

She suddenly felt herself walk into a wall of a frog, knocking her backwards and off her feet. Looking up awkwardly, she saw the frog was wearing the face mask that the cooks wore, and carrying a tray full of onigiri.

"Look where you're going, Human!" He growled, setting the tray down on a counter just next to her. "What are you doing in the kitchens, anyway?" He demanded, looming over her and casting her into shadow.

"Erm…" Chihiro stammered, nervous and embarrassed. "I-I need to feed Kamaji! Could you please get me his food, please?" She vaguely noticed her fingers fiddling with each other as she stared up at the frog.

"You're feeding Kamaji, eh?" He said suspiciously. "Shouldn't you be working on the tubs or something?"

"Please, Rin sent me to feed him! She's busy training the new human!" Chihiro blurted out in a shaky voice that she recognized from when she was first asking for a job. It seemed strange now, for her sixteen year-old self to be so articulate.

The frog glared down at her, possibly contemplating her honesty. With a disgruntled sigh, he turned on his heel.

"Stay here, Human." He commanded. Chihiro stood nervously, but did as she was told.

Her eyes wondered to the onigiri to her right. Looking again at her silver "Kohaku" bracelet, she remembered Haku.

"He's probably hungry as well…" she murmured to herself, remembering that it'd probably been a while since he'd eaten something, with all of the rest to regain his strength.

Her glance shifted again to the onigiri. There were many of them; the frog may well not miss one…

With a deep blush, she realized she'd been contemplating stealing food straight from the kitchen, from the frog that was nearly twice as large as her and already angry with her running into him.

"Still," Chihiro told herself, glancing around at the surrounding hallway. It was empty, for the time being. If she was going to do this, it had to be now. "Haku needs to eat something. He sacrificed his onigiri yesterday to help Shizuka…"

She gave the room another quick scan, and hurriedly snatched an onigiri and stuffed it into her breast pocket. A split second later, she heard the deep thuds that were approaching, recognizing it easily as the frog who had interrogated her. Nervously smoothing her uniform, she feared briefly that the rice cake in her shirt would form a noticeable bulge.

He held a bowl of white rice, complete with chopsticks, and the basket she remembered Rin carrying, full of little star-shaped candies for the soot balls.

"Here's his food, now get lost!" The frog grumbled above her as he handed her the food roughly, nearly spilling the top of the mound of rice.

"Thank you, sir!" Chihiro bowed low, and ran off in the other direction, wondering if he'd noticed the missing onigiri.

Her heart still pounding, she reached the final lift that would take her down to the boiler room and the river spirit.


	18. A Gift from the River Spirit

-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: Ack! It has been a few days since I updated here, gomen nasai! I've been absorbed in the writing of my other fic, that's coming along quite nicely. I am very proud of it, and it's growing up so fast! –sniff- Ahem…well, I finally beat the boss in my FMA video game, so that means more time to hole myself up in my room, writing fanfics! Woohoo! I'm gonna have to start up my correspondence classes soon, though, so eh, that'll take a little of my time away…hopefully not too much, eh?

A few shout-outs:: Thank you to Celestialfirefox for your reviews on both my Spirited Away fanfics, I am uber glad to have another fan! Dream Master, thank you as well, I love the feedback! Preistess Kohanna, thank you for your plentiful reviews, they are enjoyable! And to my other reviewers, tiafan, CherryBlossom, Dark Chocolate Princess and Neko-serenity! Shout outs and muffins for all of you! –tosses muffins like confetti-

Chapter 17 – A Gift from the River Spirit

The servant's door of the boiler room slid open with a soft clack, and Kamaji turned his head to see the human girl, Chihiro, crawling through the door with some difficulty, trying to manage the basket and the wavering mound of white rice at the same time. One of Kamaji's six arms flew over to take the basket gently out of her hand and set it on the ground in front of her.

"Thanks, Kamaji," Chihiro said gratefully, turning her attention to the rice. "Here's your breakfast!" She said, cheerfully holding the rice out to him.

"Ooh, thank you Chihiro," Kamaji cooed, eager to eat his meal. Chihiro took a glance around the room as she proceeded to the soot balls with the basket of candies.

The little balls were more delighted than ever to see her there, now with their food. She stepped lightly over Haku's empty blankets and knelt down, tending first to the eager soot balls, tossing them little handfuls of the little star-shaped spirit candies.

Below her, they gathered as much candy as they could, happily squeaking the whole while. Chihiro didn't take the time to watch the happy creatures, and as she had dumped the basket out over them, she turned to Kamaji.

"Uh, Kamaji? Where's—"

"Haku went outside for some air. He didn't wake up too long ago," Kamaji told her through his rice-stained mustache, knowing before she even came into the room what she was going to say.

"Oh, thanks!" Chihiro gave a quick and friendly bow and leapt over the munching of the soot balls. They jumped and squeaked their thanks as she continued through the steam room.

Turning the latch on the metal door, she quietly opened the door, peeking out, and looking at the boy, just for a moment.

He seemed to be fine. He was leaning peacefully on his hands, legs dangling over the edge of the deck, and his head was tilted contently towards the stars.

The moon bathed the river spirit in silver, his long greenish-brown hair shining and cascading beautifully over his shoulders. His shining locks floated with a passing breeze, and she caught a glimpse of his moonlit bangs, also flowing with the wind.

With another push of the door, Chihiro set herself into the moonlight, not taking her eyes off of Haku.

The boys head turned, revealing his gorgeous emerald eyes, and the little smile that tugged at his lips whenever she was near. Chihiro was instantly captured by those eyes, and for a brief second, wondered how on Earth she was able to forget such eyes.

"Hi," She managed to say, fighting her sudden timidity. She suddenly remembered the rice cake that she had stolen from the kitchen. "I uh, thought you'd be hungry, so I…" She fumbled, getting the breast pocket in her shirt open and finally pulling out the rice cake. "I got you this."

She walked to him and sat next to him, crossing her legs. Haku looked at the rice cake and smiled.

"How'd you…?" He looked at her curiously, seemingly reading her mind.

"I was in the kitchen for Kamaji's breakfast, and they were there, so…" Chihiro blushed at the dragon as he took a large and grateful bite of the rice.

"It feels like I haven't eaten in days," Haku sighed, rubbing his stomach as he swallowed the bite. "I probably haven't, actually!" Haku smiled at her, taking another bite. The last several days had indeed been spent either at work, in the field, in Yubaba's office, or in sleep in Kamajis room.

"That's what I thought, so I took it for you," Chihiro scooted closer to him. "So, how are you feeling?" She played with her bracelet, running it over her still- bandaged wrist.

"A lot better, surprisingly." Haku said between bites. "How's Shizuka? Is she adapting?" Haku turned his gleaming eyes to her.

"Yeah, I think so…" Chihiro sighed. "She and Rin are at the big tub right now, Rin's showing her the ropes."

Haku held out the remaining lump of rice, just under half of what originally was there, suggesting it to Chihiro. Chihiro looked at the morsel in front of her and immediately blushed, shaking her head from side to side vigorously.

"N-no, Haku, you eat it," She stammered, awed at the river spirit's absolute caring. "You need your strength, and Rin will probably get me and Shizuka something for breakfast in a little bit!"

Her stomach objected, emitting a low growl, reminding her that she hadn't had any food herself since the soup that Haku had swiped for her. She had been so occupied with the unconscious Haku to have cared for her own well-being.

"Are you sure? You haven't had anything since that bowl of soup, have you?" Haku leaned closely to her, concern in his eyes.

Chihiro shook her head lightly, peering at him innocently.

"You need it more than I do, Kohaku…" She said quietly, smiling assuredly at him.

Haku took another few bites, finishing off the rice cake. Almost immediately, his stomach growled for more. Ignoring it, he placed his hand into hers, running his fingers along her soft skin.

"How're your arms?" He asked, feeling the contrasting cottony texture of the bandages adorning her hands and arms.

"Hm? Oh," Chihiro whispered, as if coming out of deep thought. "They're fine, I think, I haven't felt the scratches for a while." She lifted her now dangling legs to see her scraped knees. "My knees, though…" She said as a twinge of stinging pricked at the joints as she straightened her legs.

"How'd I miss those, then…?" Haku asked, more to himself than anything, and peering wide eyed at the large scrapes. He rubbed his hands together, warming himself up.

"I do have some minor healing powers, though I'm not sure if I've regained enough energy to use them yet …" He told her as he lifted his cupped hands to his mouth and blew into them.

To Chihiro, it looked as if he was merely warming his hands from whatever cold that the summer air was providing, but he explained to her that he was trying to breathe some arcane energy into them, in order to jump-start his magical abilities that other wise would have taken a lot longer to return completely by nature.

Rubbing his hands together once more, he shut his eyes and seemed to survey his own powers from within. Chihiro watched, enthralled at the river spirit's powers. His eyes stayed shut, but he smiled as he breathed one last time into his palms.

"That should do the trick," He grinned as he opened his intense green eyes. His left hand hovered slowly over both of her knees, glowing just faintly.

The glow reflected on Chihiro's still slightly bloody knees. Chihiro watched, spellbound, as a tingling sensation flooded her knees and the skin itself began to heal over, spreading the pale tan over the injured pink and red, the blood seeming to evaporate. The glowing subsided as Haku pulled his hand away.

Chihiro was speechless, and amazed at the fact that she had just witnessed the healing powers of a river spirit.

"I think," Haku said, blowing more energy into his hands. "That I have enough to heal your arms as well."

"Right," Chihiro nodded quickly, as she began to unwind the bandages on her right wrist. Carefully unwrapping around the silver bracelet, she revealed the small cuts that the underbrush in the human world had given her.

Haku caught sight of the silver bracelet on Chihiros wrist, and suddenly felt intrigued by it. He sensed something from it, but he didn't know what.

Shrugging it off for the moment being, Haku tended to his healing duties once more, running his hand up her arms and completely sealing the little scrapes and cuts.

"Thanks, Kohaku," Chihiro whispered, letting her head rest on his strong shoulder. She for a second, took in the river spirit's unique scent; salty, but amazingly fresh, surely another sign of the river in him.

"Chihiro, that bracelet," Haku said quietly. "You weren't wearing it earlier, when I first bandaged you up."

"Oh, I bought it in the town that I live in, I had it in my pocket, so it wouldn't get muddy in the rain when I came here," Chihiro replied, once more fiddling with the jewelry. "I bought it, because…"

She held up the little rectangular plate into the moonlight before him, showing him the dragon that the jeweler had etched in, unknowingly to Haku's exact likeness. Haku marveled at the artwork, fascinated that he was carved so perfectly into flawless silver.

"It cost me, but I had to get it," Chihiro continued, remembering the serious dent it had left in her finances that day. "It looks exactly like you!" She marveled herself.

"A human did this you say?" Haku asked, looking at her. "That's amazing…"

"Yeah, that's exactly what I thought when I saw it, too. The guy really didn't want to sell it, it was the only one he had made, but I got him to make a deal," Chihiro told him, proud of herself. "And when I get home, I'm gonna carve your name into it, Kohaku, so I'll never forget your name again." She sighed, resting her head again on his shoulder and refreshing her memory of his scent.

'When she gets home'…Haku felt the heart ache of letting her go again creep up on him again. What more could he expect? He found himself lecturing himself again that she was a human, and thus belonged in her world, just as he to his. It was a cold fact of the harmony of both worlds, but a fact nonetheless.

Suddenly, he got an idea. Gently taking Chihiro's bracelet-adorned wrist, he nudged her to get her attention. She looked at Haku curiously when she picked up on his signals.

"Chihiro, I…I won't lie to you, I am really not going to like giving you up when you leave this world again, but…" Haku told her nervously, his soft hands enclosed over her bracelet. "But at least, I'll give you a gift, so you can take it with you when you go," He said, as his hands began to faintly glow around the bracelet. His eyes shut in deep concentration, collecting his remaining arcane energy, and envisioning exactly what he wanted to do.

Chihiro looked down at his hands, as the glow grew deeper and more beautiful, the wind seeming to answer them by swirling around them, lifting both the spirit's and the human's hair into playful waving above their heads. They leaned close to each other as the light from his hands slowly faded back into the dragon. Chihiro gaped as the last of the light faded into his hands, as they shifted to hold her right hand. She marveled at the softness of his hands, which somehow stayed silky and gentle even through the six years of manual work he'd put in with Rin in the bath house.

The bracelet, she was astonished to see, was still glowing in silver light that put even the moonlight around them to shame. Haku smiled at her and lifted the fading charm to be better seen.

Chihiro squinted through the renewed darkness around them, tipping the bracelet to better catch the moonlight. There, next to the engraved dragon, were several kanji, expertly carved in beautiful calligraphy by Haku's power of magic;

_Nigihayami Kohaku Nushi_

Chihiro let out a large gasp, reading the Kanji that Haku had forged into the silver. Haku smiled even more deeply as he watched her chocolate brown eyes widen, her small hand cover her mouth in awe.

"Kohaku, I…" Chihiro gasped, not knowing how to thank the dragon.

"That's not all," Haku told her contently. "Flip the plate over." He watched as she gave him a curious and fascinated look. She turned her eyes to the bracelet, and slowly obeyed, eager to find what he meant.

Gently flipping the silver plate, she sought the moonlight again for a better look. She let out another gasp to find even more kanji, carved again into the silver, in the same remarkably beautiful calligraphy as his name on the front. This time it appeared to be a short note;

_I will love you always, my Chihiro. _

_-Kohaku_

Chihiro read the kanji over and over, her smile growing with each read. She felt tears pulling at her eyes as she felt her heart skip a couple of beats.

"Kohaku, I don't know what to say…" She reflexively hugged her knees to her chest, a practice that she had often done when experiencing an emotional extreme, not taking her eyes off the note. "Thank you so much," She finally managed to happily whimper, letting her self sink into his shoulder again and feeling a little tear fall down her cheek.

Haku shifted to let her into his arms, bringing her close to his body and resting his chin on her silky brunette hair. He closed his eyes contentedly as he felt her wrap her own arms around his waist. The spell he had cast on the bracelet, both the kanji and an anti-tarnishing spell, had drained his arcane energy, but he smiled, knowing it was worth every last drop of that energy.

After only a few moments, Haku felt Chihiro break away, and caught a glimpse of her glowing brown eyes before she placed her lips onto his, gently urging his passion and love. Hakus eyes widened only for a second, then closed lightly, allowing himself to sink into her kiss. He moved his bandaged hand to gently hold her cheek and deepened the kiss, trying once more to find her human taste. He'd never tasted anything so naturally sweet.

Several minutes later, they finally pulled away, just barely allowing their lips to still touch. Each had a light splash of pink spread on their cheeks, and brown eyes met jade as their hair played around them in the light wind that seemed to mirror their affection for each other.

"You should get back to Rin," Haku whispered, running his fingers through Chihiro's chestnut brown hair. "Or Yubaba might get suspicious. Shizuka will probably need you, too."

"Kohaku…" She whispered, looking longingly into his eyes, wishing not to leave, but knowing she had to, if only for the sake of her friend. "I'll come back at sunrise, I promise," She told him before taking in the dragons taste again with a brief but zealous kiss.

The couple stood, still holding each other's hand, neither wanting to let go. The river spirit saw her to the small servant door, before pulling her in for another good-bye kiss. Chihiro smiled avidly at the boy as she disappeared behind the wooden door.

Haku beamed after her, until the door finally closed with a clack


End file.
